Aspects of biosecurity of pig feed production (review)

Food security, particularly pork production, is largely driven by the need to enhance on-farm biosecurity and control the pathways of infectious diseases. Feed and ingredients were not initially considered significant factors in the spread of infections, but recent outbreaks of swine diseases have demonstrated their role in the introduction and spread of pathogens. The purpose of this review is to consider the potential role of swine feed as a significant link in the pathogen transfer chain and to describe biosecurity measures that contribute to the epizootic welfare of swine populations. Potential methods for preventing pathogen contamination of pigs from feed are described, including prevention of entry into the feed system, mitigation of after-effects by heat treatment, or decontamination with chemicals. Strategies are proposed to reduce the risk of pathogen spread in the feed production environment, including potential batch-to-batch transfer, thereby reducing the risk of infection transmission.