Ireland needs to be ‘proactive’ in preventing bird flu outbreaks.

Ireland needs to be ‘proactive’ in preventing bird flu outbreaks.Ireland needs to take a proactive approach to preventing bird flu outbreaks, according to the Chairman of the IFA Poultry Committee Nigel Renaghan. His comments come after a prevention zone was put in place in England on Tuesday, December 6, and is set to remain in place for the next 30 days. Under the new measures in England, keepers of poultry and other captive birds are now required to keep their birds indoors, or take appropriate steps to keep them separate from wild birds. Renaghan believes similar measures must be put in place to protect the poultry sector in Ireland. “This is the critical period, if we put in place measures for 30 days and hold off the disease, we can then sit down and reassess the situation,” he said.As the Chairman of the IFA Poultry Committee has previously said, organic and free range birds are most at risk of contracting the disease due to being outside. He believes that these birds should be housed in-doors to prevent contact with wild birds, while all poultry keepers should pay special attention to their bio-security measures. “Preventative measures must be put in place to protect poultry producers, as an outbreak of the disease in Ireland could inhibit the ability to export,” he said.In the first week of December, 44 outbreaks of the disease were reported in seven EU Member States to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). Outbreaks were reported in France, Poland, the Netherlands, Romania, Germany, Austria and Finland in a mixture of wild birds and commercial poultry flocks. In total 44,292 birds died or had to be destroyed due to the disease, while both protection and surveillance zones were set up around large poultry farms that were infected by the highly pathogenic disease. Under the preventive measures put in place in England all domestic chickens, hens, turkeys and ducks should be housed immediately, according to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). As well as this all bird keepers must now take extra biosecurity steps, such as minimizing direct and indirect contact between poultry and wild birds.Bird keepers are also advised to take all reasonable precautions to avoid the transfer of contamination between premises, including cleansing and disinfection of equipment, vehicles and footwear.more

How to get rid of rodents on your farm within 21 days.

Farm rat and mouse problems have grown markedly across Ireland in recent years, according to the latest national rodent control study conducted on behalf of BASF, the global chemical company. The overwhelming majority of farms in the study, more than 90%, find rodent control more challenging these days.Longer baiting periods and more frequent infestations were identified as the most important challenges. Against this background, it is hardly surprising the majority are prioritizing the greatest potency or palatability alongside convenience of use in their rodenticide choice. Over two thirds of farmers are regularly inspecting their farms for signs of rodent activity. Typical Signs Of Rats;1)Holes or burrows in rough ground , earth banks and unmade floors. 2)Well – worn runs along the side of building with smear marks and hair. 3)Droppings at feeding sites, around burrows and along rat runs. 4) Gnawing and chewing damage to materials and buildings. 5) Foot prints in soft surfaces and tail swipes in grain stores. 6) A characteristic smell in enclosed areas. These farmers that are regularly inspecting their farms are taking the most effective approach to rodenticide use – starting to bait at the first signs of activity and baiting wherever rodent activity can be detected rather than only using rodenticides when and where rats and mice are actually seen. Storm brings one of the most powerful modern anticoagulant rodenticides to farm rat and mouse control. Storm kills after a single feed, there is no need for the wasteful, unrestricted ‘surplus’ baiting necessary with less potent rodenticides. With Storm it only takes four applications of restricted amounts of bait over a 21-day programme to achieve control. Applying Storm Bait Storm should always be handled with good quality rubber gloves used only for this purpose to avoid compromising its palatability by contaminating the bait with other pesticide or disinfectant residues. To keep Storm in prime condition, it should be transported it in the original pack and stored in a cool, secure place out of direct sunlight. Day 1 For rat and mouse control place Storm at each bait point and put Storm down each rat hole. If specially designed bait boxes are not being used, the bait should be covered with tiles, boards or lengths of pipe so rats feel safe while eating and the bait is protected from the weather and non-target species. Make a note of the date and number of blocks used at each bait point in a baiting record. Days 3 And 7 Revisit each bait point and replace any blocks that have been eaten. Clear-up any discarded bait around the bait points, and wherever blocks remain untouched consider re-siting the point to a different location. Day 14 Revisit the bait points again, replacing eaten blocks, clearing any debris, and collecting and burning any dead rodents – although most are likely to die in their holes. Again record actions in the Baiting Record. Day 21 Collect all uneaten blocks from the bait points and dispose of them safely, tidy-up around the bait points, and collect and burn any further dead rodents. The risk of disease always makes it advisable to wear gloves when handling dead rodents.more

Birds And Navigation expertise.

A study by the University of Guelph has shown that birds are not navigational experts.U of G researchers packed birds onto a flight going from Toronto to Saskatoon, before releasing them in Saskatchewan carrying miniature radio backpacks. They tracked which direction the birds flew to see whether the change in starting location made a difference. White-throated-sparrow_BrettForsyth instead of reorienting themselves and flying toward Ontario as the researchers expected, almost all the birds flew north. That’s the direction they would have flown in Ontario, toward the boreal forest. Scientists have assumed that birds travelling long distances can plot a course, regardless of obstructions. This new experiment shows something entirely different, said co-author and U of G integrative biology professor Ryan Norris. “These birds have a compass, but they don’t have a map,” he said. “It shows experimentally that these birds may not be true navigators. Since the boreal forest stretches into Saskatchewan, it may be that the landscape and environment was similar enough for these birds.” The researchers caught white-throated sparrows at Long Point Provincial Park on the shore of Lake Erie. Back at Guelph, they conducted surgeries on some of the birds, removing their magnetic sense or sense of smell. They flew the birds – along with a control group without surgery – as cargo to Saskatoon. “We used pet carriers, such as what you would use for a small dog, with three to four sparrows in each,” said Norris. “Three days later, we placed miniature radio backpacks on the birds and released them, tracking them using radio towers. Almost all flew straight north, even the ones without any surgery – this means that the birds are not true navigators.” The two-year-long experiment involved lots of planning and precision with the tiny birds — each weighs about 17 grams — as well as obtaining permits, he said. All birds survived the surgery and the travel. The findings will help in understanding the effects of constant environmental change, he added.“We have billions of migratory animals on earth, but our understanding is very rudimentary. These animals are key parts of multiple ecosystems, so understanding how they move if their environment changes is critical.” more

Reform regulations to make pet clinical trials easier.

Trials in animals can aid both veterinary and human medicine but complicated rules can stifle them ,now reform regulations to make pet clinical trials easier.For decades, the usual veterinary response to a pet’s unbearable suffering has been the same: the dearly loved animal has been quietly and humanely put to sleep. Yet a new trend has emerged over the past decade or so: in search of hope, or just a few extra months of life, owners have been willing to enrol their pets in experimental trials of new therapies. Science and medicine recognize this, and see a splendid opportunity for both pets and people. Rules must now be adjusted to exploit this potential. Clinical trials of drugs are increasingly being carried out on pets, particularly dogs and cats. Such trials are analogous to those conducted in people, and yield reliable data that can lead to swifter approval and marketing of new veterinary products. The results can also support the much tougher procedures to approve new treatments for related conditions in people. It should be a win–win situation. When little Fritzi develops a nasty lump on her neck, or lovable Tom-tom starts walking with a painful limp, a vet can, after diagnosis, offer to recruit them into any relevant clinical trial — with the possibility of a better-than-standard treatment. Veterinary surgeons say that nearly all pet owners give eager informed consent to participate, either in the hope of exploiting that possibility or because, as serial pet owners, they hope that the research will help their next animal. A forerunner of this trend, and a continuing gold standard, is the US National Cancer Institute’s Comparative Oncology Trial Consortium, which has been running for 12 years and recruits pet dogs into specific cancer trials. A dozen trials have been completed and some have supported pharmaceutical-company decisions to drop or pursue candidate drugs for human use. In the past few years, ambitious veterinary institutions around the world have started their own pet trials for conditions from cancer to arthritis and diabetes — and their focus is on both veterinary and human therapies. Veterinary surgeons are happy because the trials help to speed approval for treatments for their furry patients. Regulators of human medicines are also enthusiastic. They welcome relevant pet clinical-trial data as part of a drug-developer’s evidence that a medicine is safe and effective. Pets also offer some very specific advantages. Most tests involve laboratory animals especially bred or modified to represent key aspects of a disease — but pet animals that actually have the condition are the real McCoy. They are genetically diverse, they develop the disease spontaneously and they share the human environment. So pet trials much more closely reflect the real-life situation for people.more

Eating processed meat may cause headaches

Eating processed meat may cause headaches: US scientists have claimed that the nitrate found in processed meats, such as bacon, may be the cause of migraines.

Calls made to include cancer warning on processed meat

Calls made to include cancer warning on processed meat: Labels warning of cancer risks should appear on US processed meat and poultry products, according to The Center for Science and the Public Interest (CSPI).

Cold plasma proving to be hottest new food safety treatment.

Cold plasma proving to be hottest new food safety treatment. Described as a “purple blow torch” by food safety scientists, cold plasma treatment can kill 99.9 percent of norovirus on blueberries without damaging the delicate fruit, giving a food safety boost to the so-called superfood. cold plasma blueberry researchBrendan Niemira, a microbiologist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Eastern Regional Research Center in Wyndmoor, PA, and a team of scientists already demonstrated that cold plasma (CP) can kill pathogens such as Salmonella and E. coli on blueberries. The researchers, led by Alison Lacombe, focused on blueberries with their latest project because of the increasing popularity of the fruit in recent years, attributed to its antioxidants and other nutritional benefits. They also considered the manner in which the blue fruit is grown, packed, shipped and consumed. Blueberries are susceptible to contamination by biological hazards from pre-harvest to post-harvest stages and are most commonly consumed raw, according to the research results set for publication in the May 2017 edition of the journal Food Microbiology. “Human norovirus is one of the most common etiological agents that contaminates food and causes food borne illness.” Another factor making blueberries prime for the research is the fragile nature of berries in general. They also have some of the shortest shelf lives in the produce aisle, adding pressure to move them through the harvest and packing process as quickly as possible. The cold plasma treatment tested by the USDA researchers, more than 99.9 percent of the two viruses being studied died after two minutes or less.The process of creating plasma, which is considered the fourth state of matter after solids, liquids and gases, is created by breaking apart gas molecules and making a plume of charged electrons and ions, according to ScienceMag.org. The problem with using it as a sanitizing step is that the creation process generates heat, which is even more damaging to delicate fruits such as blueberries. Niemira and the other scientists found by simply injecting room-temperature air into the treatment chamber the heat problem was eliminated.These results demonstrate that CP viral inactivation does not rely on thermal inactivation, and is therefore nonthermal in nature,” Niemira wrote in the research report. “Currently, the preventative measures for viral outbreaks in the food supply chain primarily rely on good agricultural practices, chemical washes and increased awareness on good hygienic practices in food handling areas. However, few optimized nonthermal intervention processes are available for fresh and fresh-cut produce… “Cold plasma is an emerging nonthermal technology that offers the advantage of being chemical- and water-free, in addition to being able to operate openly and continuously at atmospheric pressure.” Additional research is needed before the CP treatment will be available for commercial-sized operations, but the researchers reported the variety of benefits it provides should make it an affordable tool for the food industry. The researchers say their purple blow torches require only one-fifth the power needed to run a hair dryer. Niemira told ScienceMag.org his team is already working to scale up the approach: “We’re making it bigger, we’re making it faster, we’re making it more efficient.” There is also evidence that CP treatment can extend shelf life by slowing spoilage rates.more