State officials say a highly contagious pig virus has been contained and eradicated. In April, the USDA confirmed five boars shipped from Texas to a central Iowa farm had pseudorabies, which can be fatal for hogs. The infected herds were euthanized. The final round of tests for the virus within a surveillance zone came back negative. Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig says responding to animal health threats requires coordination across his department, the USDA and producers.
The US eradicated the virus from commercial swine herds more than 20 years ago, but it’s still prevalent in feral hogs. Speaking during the World Pork Expo earlier this month, Naig said the impacts to trade were minimal and short-term.
The detections in Iowa and Texas marked the first cases of pseudorabies in commercial swine since 2004.
