The Conference was organised in close collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

“The OIE has already adopted numerous standards on the responsible and prudent use of antimicrobials in animals and strongly encourages the governments of all its Member Countries to include these prudential standards in their veterinary legislation. Only a rational, worldwide approach involving all those working in animal health can have any chance of succeeding. Furthermore, the support of international partner organisations and the international community is crucial to achieve this objective, since localised action solely in some rich countries would be of little use in a globalised world where resistant bacteria can circulate everywhere”, stated the Director General of the OIE, Dr Bernard Vallat.

Dr Keiji Fukuda, Assistant Director-General – Health Security and Environment, World Health Organization (WHO), also emphasised that “antimicrobial agents should only be prescribed by authorized professionals such as medical doctors and veterinarians. Under the ‘One Health’ concept, this approach is crucial to maintain the efficacy of antimicrobial agents in human and veterinary medicine.”

A consensus was reached on the need to stimulate cooperation and international solidarity with regard to ensuring supervision of the production, importation, marketing, distribution and use of antimicrobials. Given that resistant bacteria know no borders and inadequate management by a single country can jeopardise all the others, the participants advocated strengthening cooperation to help countries that are not yet in a position to apply the OIE's prudential standards to put in place the necessary legislation, structures and human and financial resources.

They also recommended strengthening good governance practices regulating the production, importation, registration, marketing, distribution and use of quality veterinary medicinal products worldwide.

Dr Vallat concluded by saying that “the content of veterinary education and the effectiveness of Veterinary Statutory Bodies, the ethics and supervision of the veterinary profession and the capacity of the competent control authorities are crucial elements of the functional and legal framework within which the veterinary profession must operate. Together, they constitute a key component in the concept of good governance advocated by the OIE. The prescription and delivery of antimicrobials in animal production farms must in all countries be performed by well-trained veterinarians who are supervised in compliance with legal requirements to ensure that professional integrity and ethics are constantly maintained”.

The Conference brought together the representatives of more than 100 countries and the various sectors involved; officials of national and international authorities and representatives of national, regional and international NGOs and the private sector took part in the event.

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Following PIC China’s recent announcements of its joint ventures with leading integrators, Besun and Shennong, to establish new Nucleus herds with combined capacity of over 5,000 sows, the company has reported the stocking of another new Nucleus facility in China. This was accomplished by the successful completion of an export of 1,196 great grandparents from North America to the central province of Shaanxi. The animals arrived in excellent condition at Xi'An (otherwise famous for the legions of the Terracotta Army) by chartered Boeing 747 on January 30 and were safely transferred to the purpose-built facility in Chunhua County.

The farm, PIC's seventh operational Nucleus in China, has been constructed to the company's latest specifications and is directly managed by PIC. It will serve as a Dam-line and Sire-line Nucleus, disseminating the newest advances in PIC's genetic technology throughout its China production network and producing grandparents and terminal boars for distribution to its growing customer base.

According to Nancy Jiang, General Manager of Genus China, “China is a specific target area of growth for Genus, in both pigs and dairy, and the stocking of the Shaanxi Nucleus is another important milestone on the strategic road map. This shipment underpins our plans on a number of fronts. Firstly, it is vital for us to continue to build capacity to meet current and forecast demand in the world’s largest pork market. Secondly, we can quickly transmit the benefits of the latest genotypes to our entire pyramid and to our partners and customers who are leading the industry's transition to large-scale farming. And lastly, but of equal importance, we have brought in some new lines that strengthen the platform for the development of products tailored to the market. It's really a great start to the New Year!"

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Because of the concern for public health, there is intense focus on the use of antibiotics in animal husbandry. This is why the agricultural industry and scientists have spent many years trying to find alternative ways and means of protecting livestock against disease – not at least bowel diseases in pigs and poultry.

There is considerable expertise at Aarhus University in the intestinal health and biology of farm animals, but the scientists would like to collaborate with Chinese scientists who also have considerable knowledge in this area. A donation to the tune of DKK 300,000 from the Villum Foundation’s Velux Visiting Professor Programme 2013-2014 has now enabled this collaboration.

A distinguished Chinese scientist, professor Wei-Yun Zhu, who is leader of the Laboratory of Gastrointestinal Microbiology at Nanjing Agricultural University, will be visiting Aarhus University’s agricultural research facilities at Foulum. Professor Zhu works on gut flora in relation to animal nutrition, and during her stay at Aarhus University she will also be teaching on an international PhD course arranged by scientists from the Department of Animal Science.

Collaboration on intestinal health

The seeds for the collaboration were established already three years ago at the Department of Animal Science.

"At that time we received a grant from the Aarhus University Research Foundation for the establishment of a research platform for gut biology and health with the purpose of forging collaboration across departments and faculties. One of the activities of the platform was an international seminar held in October 2011 with participation of leading international speakers – including professor Zhu," said research section manager Charlotte Lauridsen from the Department of Animal Science at Aarhus University.

At the international seminar Professor Zhu also took part in an internal workshop in Foulum where further connections were established. A colleague of Charlotte Lauridsen, senior scientist Ole Højberg, thus subsequently participated as a speaker at an international workshop "Interplay of Microbiota and Gut Function in Pigs" at Nanjing Agricultural University in November 2012, organised by Professor Zhu.

PhD course on gut biology and health

More specifically, the collaboration with Professor Zhu will involve the conduction of a PhD course "Gut Biology and Health", where she will provide some of the teaching. The course will be held for the first time in August 2013 and is expected to be repeated the following year. The grant from the Villum Foundation will cover the costs of lending professor Zhu to Denmark both this year and the next.

"It will undoubtedly strengthen our collaboration with China. When she is here, she will also have the opportunity to discourse with our other PhD students and discuss different research activities with us. I will also be taking her to the annual meeting of the European Federation of Animal Science (EAAP) in Nantes, France," said Ms Lauridsen, to which Professor Zhu is an invited speaker at the sessionModulation of the immune defence to cope with antibiotic use reduction, which is arranged by the Commission of Pig Production at EAAP, where Ms Lauridsen is the vice-president.

This is not the first time that the Department of Animal Science has a working relationship with China. The department has participated in the network projectBridging veterinary and animal science in Aarhus University, Nanjing Agricultural University and China Agricultural University focusing on the basis for sustainable livestock productionwhich was financed by the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation. In this connection, a delegation comprising the head of the department Klaus Lønne Ingvartsen and a number of senior scientists visited the Chinese agricultural universities.

"There is mutual interest in our work," said head of department Klaus Lønne Ingvartsen. "The project has been the background for workshops in China in 2011 where the foundation was laid for collaboration with two top universities within our research areas, including Nanjing Agricultural University. It is therefore pleasing that we can extend our collaboration with Nanjing Agricultural University with the donation from the Villum Foundation for collaboration with Professor Zhu."

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In a letter sent by the Deputy Head of the Russian veterinary authority Rosselkhoznadzor Eugene Nepoklonov to the Deputy Administrator Services Food Safety and Inspection (FSIS) USDA Ronald Jones in response to the US request that the market reopens, the Russian authority said it requires a full description of the US research methods for ractopamine residues in meat products, including turkey meat, spelling out their sensitivity, the limit of the detection methods and the frequency of monitoring studies.

The letter said that trade could resume if the laboratory techniques were explained and were in line with the national legislation and international agreements.

Rosselkhoznador said that the methods for the detection of residues of ractopamine had to be confirmed by the results of the testing method using high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric detection (HPLC).

Currently, Russia permits the detection of residues of ractopamine in products in the range of 0.1-1 mg/kg.

Guidance on the definition of testing of ß-agonists in animal feed, body fluids, organs and tissues of animals, using high performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometric detection have been sent to the American side.

In addition, the letter said the Russia authorities are ready to hold technical consultations and Rosselkhoznadzor said it would welcome the resumption of the supply of pork and beef after providing effective guarantees about the absence of ractopamine.

The letter also asked for information about companies interested in supplying their products to the Russian market.

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Chickens are prepared through strict halal procedures daily in Malaysia, the main exporter of high quality halal chicken to all McDonald's restaurant in the region.

The information was revealed following Kuwaiti delegation's visit to Malaysia to observe the sophisticated systems that McDonald's implies on suppliers in the preparation food by halal procedures. The delegation included the Kuwaiti Director of Commercial Fraud and accompanied by executives from McDonald's. The trip included visits to Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM), an official Malaysian authority that supervises Halal procedures; the Mac Food factory; and two certified Halal slaughter houses, where chickens are prepared daily - under the supervision of JAKIM. Approximately 1,200 employees work at both slaughter houses, and are all holders of certificates provided by the authority.

"Ensuring that all ingredients and produce are halal is McDonald's top priority," said Yousif Abdulghani, the Managing Director of McDonald's Middle East and Africa. "All products served at all McDonald's restaurants in the Middle East are Halal, as they all ingredients are inspected and approved by local authorities and Halal officers at the countries of export and customs officials at the port of entry. Our customers can be assured that the food that they enjoy is halal and has the same world-famous taste."

Since the first launch of McDonald's in the GCC in 1993, the company has offered high quality halal food to all customers through qualified suppliers. McDonald's ensures 100 per cent supplier eligibility before adding any source to its database of approved suppliers. To qualify as a McDonald's supplier, they must adhere to social responsibility policies on aspects concerning animal welfare, animal feed, as well as prohibition of deforestation and use of antibiotics as growth promoters and above all, Halal.

McDonalds halal certificates are displayed at its restaurants and on thewebsite. McDonald's also offers an 'Open-Door' program, open to the public, to take a closer look at the quality standards of the products and procedures implemented at the restaurants. More information on the program and registrations can be found on the McDonald's Arabia website.

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It comes after Tesco announced its ambitions to build partnerships, become more transparent and to make ‘real changes to the way Tesco source’, announced by the supermarket’s chief executive Philip Clarke at the NFU Conference.

The NFU said it welcomed the sentiment of Tesco’s latest announcements and is reassured that the UK farming industry’s biggest customer recognised the important role that farmers played in delivering quality food for their consumers.

NFU President Peter Kendall said: “We recognise the significance of Tesco’s commitments and will be working closely with its team to ensure that the retailer’s sentiments and latest commitments deliver real value to the sustainability of the UK farming industry.

“What we want to see is measurable changes on sourcing, longer term commitments and improved relationships.

"The meeting was a first step in working towards these goals and it showed clear signs that Tesco wants to build partnerships. There is a lot of work to be done and the NFU will be working to help Tesco deliver.”

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Sales of fresh and frozen beef have increased two per cent in the last four weeks and countering a one per cent volume drop, according to latest retail figures.

The Kantar Worldpanel detailed data for the four-week period to February 17 reveals 14 per cent increased volume sales of steaks and mince, with expenditure on these two categories rising eight per cent and six per cent respectively, with a nine per cent increase in the number of households buying these products.

However, fresh and frozen beef burger volumes were down 35 per cent compared with the same period last year. Chilled and frozen ready meals were also down, all likely the result of the horse meat investigations. At this stage though it is hard to evaluate how much of the consumption change can be attributed to consumer concerns around the horsemeat investigations and how much was impacted by the removal of products from shelves by some retailers.

“The beef sales data is reassuring. Millions of packs of beef products have been removed from sale which inevitably has a negative effect on the bottom line figures so to see just a one per cent fall in volume means more people are turning to fresh, assured beef, trading up from value end products,” said Nick Allen, sector director at EBLEX, who revealed the figures today.

“Throughout the crisis, we have been pushing the message that consumers need to be looking for fresh, assured beef products to give confidence in provenance and traceability, and these figures do suggest that is happening.

“A one per cent swing one way or the other is seen regularly in the ebb and flow of sales figures, so to have this set against the backdrop of horsegate in encouraging. However, it still remains to be seen whether or not there is any long-term damage to trade.”

On the lamb front, there was also encouraging news, with UK retail sales up 44 per cent on this time last year, driven by a huge 143 per cent leap in legs of lamb sold. Expenditure in the 12-week period rose 13 per cent year-on-year to £159 million.

However, the data does not distinguish between domestic and imported product. With imports from New Zealand up 77 per cent in January compared to the same period a year ago, and with the liveweight SQQ average recovering slightly but still at least 10 per cent down on 2012, there is some way to go before sheep meat producers see decent returns from their enterprises.

“There is movement in the right direction, both on retail sales and farmgate prices, but the sales data is masking significant imported product,” added Nick.

“It is a reversal of fortune from where we were this time last year though with shrinking space in stores, falling penetration and high retail prices forcing lamb towards becoming a niche product only.

“The reality remains however that despite the liveweight SQQ on 6 March averaging 183.0p/kg, a six-month record, and deadweight lamb prices up 43p since the middle of January to a five-month high, it is still a tough marketplace for lamb at the moment.”

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Laboratory tests found porcine circovirus (PCV) in one of the water samples taken from Huangpu River, a water source for city residents, sources with Shanghai municipal agricultural commission said.

The virus causes porcine circovirus disease in pigs but does not spread to human beings, a commission statement said.

All other tests of the river water provided negative results, including tests for common pig-borne diseases such as foot and mouth, swine fever, hog cholera and epidemic diarrhea.

Authorities are investigating where the dead pigs came from. The commission said they are working with neighboring provinces to trace their source, and have warned riverside residents to refrain from dumping animals into the river.

Local media reports said the pigs mainly came from Shanghai's neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

The city and Songjiang district governments retrieved the pigs from Friday (8 March) night to Sunday (10 March).

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The results of this project were published ahead of print in theJournal of Animal Science.

Enviropigs have genetically modified salivary glands, which help them digest phosphorus in feedstuffs and reduce phosphorus pollution in the environment. After developing the initial line of Enviropigs, researchers found that the line had certain genes that could be unstable during reproduction or impractical in commercial use.

Scientists at the University of Guelph created the Cassie line to address these problems. In their paper for the Journal of Animal Science, they explain that the Cassie line has the same ability to digest high levels of phosphorus in plant matter.

Phosphorus is crucial for healthy growth in pigs. Unfortunately, 50 to 70 per cent of the phosphorus in grain is in the form of phytic acid, a compound indigestible by pigs. Because of this, many farmers have to supplement pig diets with an enzyme called phytase. Phytase breaks down phytic acid and helps pigs digest more of the nutrient. The phytase enzyme has a hefty price tag for farmers, and the enzyme can be accidentally damaged or destroyed when farmers mix feed.

The Enviropig was created to solve this problem. The transgenic pig synthesizes phytase in its salivary glands, eliminating the need for additional supplements or enzymes in the feed. By digesting more phosphorus, the Enviropig also produces less phosphorus in its waste.

"The enzyme is secreted in the saliva and functions in a similar fashion to that of phytase included in the diet," said Dr Cecil Forsberg, Professor Emeritus, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology at the University of Guelph and co-author of the study.

Though no studies indicate a food safety risk from genetically modified Enviropig pork, meat from the Enviropig is not yet available for human consumption. Dr Forsberg said using Enviropigs could improve food production and the environment.

"When transgenic food animals are accepted by consumers, the Enviropig perhaps would be one of the first innovations to be introduced into swine production," said Dr Forsberg. "We have demonstrated that the gene can be transferred by breeding through many generations in a stable fashion. Furthermore, the pigs are healthy."

Research on the Cassie line stopped in June 2012, but researchers collected semen from the pigs, and they have the option to breed new Enviropigs.

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Eggs produced by JS West and Companies, certified as humane by American Humane Association's American Humane Certified™ farm animal welfare program, and marketed under the label, "Comfort Coop," are now in the aisles of major supermarkets and grocery stores throughout California. Enriched colony housing not only provides room for hens to stand up, turn around, and extend their wings, but it also meets the natural behavior need of hens to nest, perch and scratch. For consumers, enriched colony eggs provide a safe and affordable choice that meets the ethical considerations for good animal welfare.

Enriched Colony Barns were first endorsed in 2010 as a humane production system (in addition to free-range and cage-free) by American Humane Association, based on existing research and AHA's more than 200 science-based animal welfare standards. Enriched Colony Housing was proposed to Congress this year, and was sponsored in the Senate by Diane Feinstein of CA, as the mandated minimum standard for egg production in the United States.

The first enriched colony barn was built in California by JS West and Companies in 2010. American Humane Association certified the farm and provided the Seal of Approval for the equipment and installation in the barn. The production of the first enriched colony farm eggs was introduced under the Comfort Coop brand in 2012, is marketed by Nucal Foods in Ripon, CA, and is now available to California retailers, including Safeway, Lucky, Bel Air, Raley's, Nugget Markets, O'Brien's Market, Nob Hill Foods, and Save Mart Supermarkets. The announcement of the Comfort Coop brand was made at Natural Products Expo West this week.

"The hens come first," said Jill Benson at JS West and Companies. "We are passionate about the quality of the eggs we put on the table, as well as the health and welfare of our hens. The American Humane Certified program provides verifiable assurance that we have met rigorous, science-based animal welfare standards, and that the animals in the program were humanely raised throughout their lives."

"Consumers are increasingly concerned with making food purchases that are in line with their values," said Kathi Brock, National Director of American Humane Association's Humane Heartland™ program, which includes the American Humane Certified farm animal welfare program, the first, largest and fastest-growing humane certification effort in the United States. "Because of enlightened producers like JS West and products like Comfort Coop Eggs, we can all make humane choices every time we shop. This is a chance for everyone who cares about doing good in the world to be a good egg….just by buying a good egg."

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