Source:  Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINPLACE.COM, 9/10/09

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack called a news conference Thursday to remind the media the continued misuse of the terms "swine flu" to characterize the H1N1 virus is not only inaccurate, but is kicking an industry that is already down.

"The media is causing in my view undue and undeserved harm to America's agricultural industry…. Pork producers are suffering through a very, very depressed market … and every time the flu is mislabeled and misrepresented it makes it that much more difficult for us to climb out of this difficult economic time," Vilsack said.

He also told reporters USDA has developed a seed virus and given it to five veterinary manufacturers to speed creation of a vaccine for swine in case H1N1 is passed from humans to the hog population, which has not yet occurred in the United States. He added that even if that does occur, swine typically recover from such viruses and the virus cannot be passed through pork meat.

That said, if any swine contract H1N1, they will be kept out of the slaughter population until recovered.

H1N1 in U.S. hogs

During a follow-up news conference later in the day, Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan said she fully expects H1N1 to be discovered in the U.S. hog population, "and I just hope it's not big headlines on front pages of newspapers." USDA officials said H1N1 has so far been discovered in hogs in Canada, Australia and Argentina.

While a swine vaccine for H1N1 has not yet been developed, Vilsack estimated USDA has saved four to seven months in the race to produce one by creating the seed virus for private manufacturers to work with. USDA has also increased surveillance in hog populations in an effort to catch any outbreak early and limit its spread.

Recounting the damage of media mislabeling, Vilsack said school lunch and breakfast purchasers have become confused and have at times been less willing to buy pork. He said he is working with the Department of Education, Department of Defense and the Justice Department's correctional facilities to encourage them to continue to buy pork.

"By (USDA) continuing to purchase pork (for feeding programs) I think we are conveying the message that … pork is safe to eat."

Lack of effort

Vilsack took the media to task for its lack of effort, "to do a good job, a correct job of making sure this is characterized properly … the job of the media is to get it right and not get it convenient." He also made an emotional appeal.

"I want folks in this business of conveying messages to understand that behind that message there is a family today who is at a breakfast table with a cup of coffee wondering how they are going to be able to pay their bills when they continually sell pork for less than what it costs to produce and they continue to get hammered for something they have absolutely have nothing to do with."

USDA pork purchases

Vilsack said USDA will likely buy more pork after Oct. 1 begins the new fiscal year. Last week the agency bought another $30 million in pork for food and nutrition programs.

He said he is also working with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to ask banks to understand the "short-term" problems in the dairy and pork industries when re-evaluating farmers' loans and valuing their assets. Low pork prices have led banks to devalue the assets that underpin farmers' loans.

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