With the global resurgance of the H1N1 virus, we spoke to an official about its impact on U.S. pork exports.
By Matt Buhrman
Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 3:59 p.m.
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SIGOURNEY, IOWA -- At Iowa State University Extension in Keokuk County, Agriculture Swine Field Specialist, Terry Steinhart said that over 4 billion pounds of pork are exported from the U.S. annually, and that any decrease is a significant number.
Steinhart said that the initial H1N1 scare hurt the number of U.S. exports, but that people understand the virus more now. He added that this recent outbreak should not impact this year's exports.
"I think those markets are going to open up. And probably the biggest concern will be the economic conditions of the countries: whether they can afford to import our pork," Steinhart said.
He described how Swine Flu is spread among pigs, and urges that all facility workers get the H1N1 flu shot so they do not carry a potential germ near the animals.
"The pigs right now, if they do get the flu they are going to go through a time of sickness, just like people do: four or five or ten days. If you are talking about a herd, maybe a couple of weeks. And then they are going to be over it and not going to spread the virus," Steinhart said.
Steinhart said that Iowa has many advantages in producing pork over other parts of the nation.
"When you talk about sustainability, it's almost perfect for pigs because we raise the corn and we put the manure back on the cornfields and so that's a real sustainable type of production," Steinhart said.