Commonground
Senior Moderator
For many producers, biosecurity is seen as a cost and not as an investment
Story and photo by Christine Won
August 18, 2025
Veterinarians agreed: Livestock producers can often see biosecurity measures as a cost, rather than a benefit.
For instance, it wasn’t until after a retrospective analysis on the economic impact of a 2017 outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza type A (H5N8) on commercial poultry farms in South Africa that area producers began to realize the value of biosecurity, said Dr. Ziyanda Majokweni-Qwalela, president of the South African Veterinary Association.
Dr. Majokweni-Qwalela and other attendees voiced similar comments during Dr. Csaba Varga’s session, “Evaluating and Improving Biosecurity on Beef Cattle and Swine Farms,” on July 20 at AVMA Convention 2025, which took place July 18-22, in conjunction with the 40th World Veterinary Association Congress in Washington, D.C.
“That (analysis) helped a lot in terms of getting farmers to buy in on implementing biosecurity measures, because now they could see the value after seeing the cost,” Dr. Majokweni-Qwalela said. “Otherwise, disease prevention is always a tough sell because they may err on the side that they may never have to deal with an incursion.”
Calling effective biosecurity “the first line of defense” in U.S. livestock production, Dr. Varga, an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine, highlighted the growing risks from global threats such as the African swine fever.
“Biosecurity practices on beef cattle and swine farms are essential for preventing the introduction of pathogens into farms and their spread within and between farms,” Dr. Varga told AVMA News. “Farmers’ and veterinarians’ attitudes toward disease prevention and control practices impact the adoption and effectiveness of disease prevention.”
Industry surveys
...continued: https://www.avma.org/news/emphasizing-value-biosecurity-livestock-production
Story and photo by Christine Won
August 18, 2025
Veterinarians agreed: Livestock producers can often see biosecurity measures as a cost, rather than a benefit.
For instance, it wasn’t until after a retrospective analysis on the economic impact of a 2017 outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza type A (H5N8) on commercial poultry farms in South Africa that area producers began to realize the value of biosecurity, said Dr. Ziyanda Majokweni-Qwalela, president of the South African Veterinary Association.
Dr. Majokweni-Qwalela and other attendees voiced similar comments during Dr. Csaba Varga’s session, “Evaluating and Improving Biosecurity on Beef Cattle and Swine Farms,” on July 20 at AVMA Convention 2025, which took place July 18-22, in conjunction with the 40th World Veterinary Association Congress in Washington, D.C.
“That (analysis) helped a lot in terms of getting farmers to buy in on implementing biosecurity measures, because now they could see the value after seeing the cost,” Dr. Majokweni-Qwalela said. “Otherwise, disease prevention is always a tough sell because they may err on the side that they may never have to deal with an incursion.”
Calling effective biosecurity “the first line of defense” in U.S. livestock production, Dr. Varga, an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine, highlighted the growing risks from global threats such as the African swine fever.
“Biosecurity practices on beef cattle and swine farms are essential for preventing the introduction of pathogens into farms and their spread within and between farms,” Dr. Varga told AVMA News. “Farmers’ and veterinarians’ attitudes toward disease prevention and control practices impact the adoption and effectiveness of disease prevention.”
Industry surveys
...continued: https://www.avma.org/news/emphasizing-value-biosecurity-livestock-production