Symposium Practical Methods of Avian Influenza Prevention and Control to Protect Poultry and Humans Consumer Perspectives on the Safety of Poultry Products Dr. Jack Shere, Dr. Deborah Nelson Robert O’Connor Veterinary Services, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Foster Farms Agriculture Poultry has been linked to foodborne illnesses Biosecurity approaches fall into two caused by Salmonella spp. and categories. Structural biosecurity is built into Campylobacter spp. A 2014 University of the physical construction and maintenance of California research project, funded in part by a facility. Operational biosecurity Foster Farms, reported on observed handling encompasses the standard operating behavior when 120 volunteers prepared procedures (SOPs) that minimize the chance chicken and salad in their homes. Post-meal of virus entering the poultry house and preparation/video recording, each volunteer compliance with those SOPs. Over the long completed a questionnaire related to their food term, poultry producers will need to consider safety attitudes and knowledge. The both operational and structural biosecurity to consumer responses to the questionnaire reduce their overall risk of HPAI. demonstrated that they had perceived knowledge of safe-food handling, and had Based on expert opinion and experience in the personally heard of people becoming ill from recent outbreak, the highest risks for HPAI eating poultry products. In practice though, as virus introduction are personnel who enter the revealed by the video recording, another set of poultry buildings, shared equipment and results emerged regarding consumer shared crews, procedures for disposal of dead behavior. This study confirms that measures birds, and manure management. These can be taken to mitigate the risk of food safety elements should be the highest priority in illnesses caused by the handling and cooking allocating resources for improved biosecurity. of raw poultry products. The industry should Further, three concepts may be new to most not abdicate the responsibility for educating existing biosecurity plans and should be consumers buying raw poultry to government strongly considered for all commercial agencies, consumer activist groups, and operations: a biosecurity officer, a line of public or in-home education. Evoking the "one separation for each building, and a perimeter medicine" approach, the poultry industry must buffer area. accept its role in making its final product safer, not just through interventions in the field or Effective biosecurity requires vigilance; processing plant, but also in their customer's producers should put a system in place to kitchen. This approach, industry shouldering verify that biosecurity enhancements are some direct responsibility for the safety of the being followed. While there were no human end-user's experience and messaging cases of influenza associated with the HPAI appropriately, is not novel. Data outbreaks in 2014-2016, some strains of avian demonstrates this to be the case with other influenza are known to be zoonotic. Rare consumer packaged goods; alcoholic human infections with some avian viruses beverages being a primary example. have occurred, most often after unprotected contact with infected birds or contaminated science-based, pre-emptive action to protect surfaces. Responders must take precautions consumers, employees and the public trust. to minimize their contact with virus- contaminated material, including safe work Recent Avian Influenza Outbreaks in practices, and proper fitting and use of Poultry and Humans: An Epidemiologic personal protective equipment. Seasonal Perspective influenza vaccination is encouraged. David E. Swayne The Interface Between Public Health and Commercial Poultry Production: Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, A View of Things to Come United States National Poultry Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, United F. William Pierson, MS, DVM, PhD, DACPV States Department of Agriculture Center for Molecular Medicine and Infectious High pathogenicity avian influenza (AI) viruses Diseases, Department of Population Health (HPAIV) has caused 37 epizootics in poultry Sciences, Virginia-Maryland College of and wild birds since 1959. Low pathogenicity Veterinary Medicine, Virginia Tech avian influenza viruses (LPAIV) are ubiquitous in many migratory waterfowl and shorebirds. Public health as it pertains to commercial H9N2 LPAIV is endemic in poultry populations poultry production, whether it is related to food of North Africa and Asia and has caused safety, food defense, occupational tremendous negative economic impact on safety/health or environmental concerns, is an poultry production. The majority of the HPAIV evolving landscape. Pressure from epizootics have been small with rapid consumers, their representatives, and elimination by stamping-out programs. The government agencies tend to drive industry largest epizootic, H5Nx goose Guangdong change. Addressing the moral imperative (Gs/GD) lineage (i.e. panzootic), has killed or before it becomes a legal one is always good resulted in culling of over 500 million poultry business (GM is compelling example) and a and has affected 70 countries. This single more proactive rather than reactive approach outbreak is larger than the other 36 epizootics can positively influence public perception and combined. The mode of farm-to-farm spread reduce the need for regulation. Issues that has varied, but movement of fomites through may be perceived or truly become threats to human activity is the main method with minor public health can potentially be predicted if we contribution by air dispersion. LPAIV and look at historical patterns. Topics such as: 1) HPAIV have caused sporadic human agroterrorism, 2) the evolution of Salmonella infections mainly by the H5N1 Gs/GD lineage serovars, 3) ESKAPE (MDR strains), CREs HPAIV (1996-present), H7N7 HPAIV in the and Listeria (as food/workplace pathogens), 4) Netherlands (2003), H7N9 LPAIV in China antibiotics, inorganic arsenic and disinfectants (2013-present), and rarely with other HPAIV as environmental toxicants / down-stream (e.g. H7N3) and LPAIV (e.g. H9N2). food-chain residues, and 5) acquired Approximately 1200 human AIV infections hypersensitivities to airborne particulates of have been identified in the past 20 years and poultry origin will be discussed. Past trends, with a near 60% fatality rate. By comparison, current findings, and plausible extrapolations human seasonal influenza infect billions of will be explored with the intent of promoting people and 300,000-500,000 die annually. The human AIV infections resulted from direct exposure to infected live poultry with highest impact of acting on specific disease risk of infection for farm workers (e.g. H7N7) determinants in small scale experimental or and consumers in contact with live poultry field studies; g) although presently rarely used markets (H5N1 and H7N9). Consumption of in poultry, modelling can be a valuable tool for infected poultry products has not been a risk decision-making, allowing the exploration of factor and has not been a food safety issue. various control measures; and, finally, h) a monitoring of the control measures to ensure How epidemiology is used in investigating that they are properly applied, and in order to poultry disease outbreaks assess their value. Jean-Pierre Vaillancourt Communicating Science-based Information to Non-scientists Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Nathaniel L. Tablante University of Montreal Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary When a disease outbreak is first reported, Medicine, University of Maryland College many key questions arise relative to the origin Park of the problem and any associated risk factors or determinants of the disease. In poultry, Outbreaks of zoonotic diseases that have epidemiological methods are commonly great economic and/or public health impact applied to the investigation of infectious always get media and public attention. In a diseases. But it is also worth noting the world dominated by social media and other contributions of epidemiology in the electronic means of communication, investigation of non-infectious conditions. disseminating objective science-based information to non-scientists such as the From a methodological viewpoint, the three media, policymakers, and the public promptly applied activities of epidemiology are, in and accurately is extremely important and nature, descriptive, analytical, and helps ensure consumer trust and confidence, experimental. They may be used in a series of particularly in poultry and other food products phases that include: a) the diagnosis; b) a derived from agriculture. For example, when description of the populations at risk and the outbreaks of catastrophic and economically temporal and spatial distribution of the devastating diseases such as avian influenza disease. This may generate hypotheses; c) an occur, our task as poultry veterinarians or investigative phase, which may involve a poultry scientists is to communicate science- series of field studies designed to test these based information about the outbreak in hypotheses; d) experiments performed under language that is simple, clear, concise, and controlled conditions to test the hypotheses in non-technical. The American Association for more details; e) an analytical phase, in which the Advancement of Science (AAAS) provides the results produced by the above excellent tips on how scientists can investigations