Poultry and pig units need to focus on comprehensive and effective disinfection to achieve high levels of biosecurity and minimise the consequences of pathogenic infections on performance.
At the heart of this should be a regular review of all hygiene protocols and procedures to ensure they are as effective as possible. In this way, producers will be able to maximise biosecurity and reduce the losses in productivity, including those resulting from sub-clinical health issues.
“Monogastric units remain at risk of a broad spectrum of pathogens where infections can compromise performance,” comments Dan Clow, pig and poultry sales specialist with Neogen.
“In poultry units we typically see reduced growth, rate of lay, egg quality, duration of lay or mortality. In pig units, growth and feed conversion will typically be reduced under pathogenic challenges.”
He says the problem is that the previous batch of pigs or birds will have been exposed to micro-organisms that may have caused disease in more mature pigs or birds. While older animals may fight off the challenge, chicks or young birds and piglets will not tolerate them so well. All too often poor performance, especially poor feed conversion ratio (FCR) is put down to feeding, but in many cases will be due to sub-clinical pathogenic infections.
“Cleaning and disinfection will always be a key pillar in monogastric farm biosecurity. Cleaning with a foam detergent will help remove soiling before applying disinfectant. Disinfectants that combine a high initial kill rate with a long-lasting residual action are ideal. However, over time, routines have tended to become increasingly standardised and the time available to remove litter and other organic material, to clean and then disinfect is becoming tighter.
“This means that in many cases simpler programmes are being used, including higher application rates of chemical ‘just to be sure’. In addition, time constraints may mean that target application contact times are seldom achieved, or stages are simply cut out, reducing the effectiveness of cleaning and disinfecting.”
The pathogenic challenges being faced are also changing, meaning routines need to evolve to deliver optimum disinfection. Mr Clow points out that all pathogens, and in particular viruses, are constantly mutating, allowing them to adapt to pH sensitivity. For example, avian influenza strains are particularly adept at this. At the same time, there are peaks and troughs in particular problems, and he says that salmonella and coccidiosis have been particular challenges this year.
“As viruses mutate and challenges evolve, it is essential to re-assess cleaning protocols. All units are unique, with differing combinations of pathogenic challenges, facilities and environment so we would advise reviewing cleaning protocols before every new crop to ensure they are as effective as possible.”
Mr Clow regularly reviews cleaning protocols and says that by identifying specific problems, it is possible to refine the existing programme to increase its effectiveness. For example, he comments that on several farms recently, investing more time in removing biofilm from floors has led to better standards of disinfection.
“It’s about developing an effective routine that is practical within the time constraints and delivers a good return on investment. For example, it might involve changing dilution rates to reduce the amount of a disinfectant used. Alternatively, it might be more effective to use a combination of disinfectants, as opposed to a single product.”
He explains that chemical disinfectants are constantly evolving to meet the challenges of mutating pathogens alongside tightening environmental and health and safety regulations. Selecting the appropriate mix of chemistry will help improve the efficacy of cleaning protocols.
“When using a combination of disinfectants, it will be important to use them at the correct concentration and in the right order. I would also advise verifying the cleaning processes by measuring adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This can be done after terminal cleanout and before bedding is put down. This simple test indicates the levels of live pathogens remaining after disinfection and can provide a measure of the effectiveness of existing and enhanced routines.
“By selecting the most appropriate and compatible cleaners and disinfectants to address the challenges on your unit, it will be possible to achieve more effective overall hygiene and help reduce the risk of pathogenic disease. This in turn will lead to improved performance and output,” Mr Clow concludes.
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