Brazil

ABPA strengthens protocols to protect biosecurity

The Brazilian Association for Animal Protein (ABPA) disclosed to its members, through the update of its biosecurity protocol, the recommendation to immediately suspend visits to farms, slaughterhouses and other poultry establishments in Brazil.

Posted on Dec 15 ,04:17

The decision was taken within the scope of the association's board of directors, and is valid for both Brazilians and foreigners. Only those who work directly and exclusively at the respective production unit should have authorized access.

The recommendation is valid regardless of compliance with "sanitary voids" - measures previously taken to authorize access, in which the professional from other countries fulfilled a period of quarantine to attest the absence of any contamination. ABPA also recommends that specific and emergency needs be analyzed in the light of these recommendations, and with duplication of care.

ABPA continues in a massive sectoral campaign, and has also recommended the following precautions to Brazilian poultry farmers:

•       Hand hygiene and change of clothes and shoes before accessing the farms, in the case of professionals with authorized access;
•       Disinfection of all vehicles accessing the property, whether for leisure or transport;
•       Hygiene of all clothes and shoes in case of returning from a trip abroad, in addition to emptying the toilet when returning to work;
•       Avoid contact between farm animals and other birds, especially wild birds.

According to the president of ABPA, Ricardo Santin, the entire Brazilian productive sector was called upon to intensify the measures, in order to preserve the health status of Brazil.

"It must be emphasized that Brazil does not have and has never registered Avian Influenza in its territory. In this sense, we want to reinforce the sectorial strategy to prevent the problem from entering the country's industrial production. It should be remembered that the cases registered in South America occurred on the coast, in local and migratory waterfowl. There are geographic issues that also protect our sector from this disease that only affects animals. Even so, we are on full alert to keep Brazil in its position as the world's largest exporter and second largest producer of chicken meat, in addition to being a significant producer of eggs. It is a sectoral issue, but also of interest to society, since they are two of the proteins most consumed by the Brazilian population", emphasizes Santin.

Santin also recalls that notifications of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in wild birds or other non-industrial birds, and Low Pathogenicity in domestic or captive birds are not expected to affect the health status of the country and generate market closure, in light of the regulations of the World Organization for Animal Health (WHOA).

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