Swine Extension

by Megan Roberts, Extension educator, Ag Business Management The United States Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency’s   Pandemic Livestock Indemnity Program (PLIP)  opened for application by qualified livestock producers on July 20 and remains open until September 17. The program assists swine, chicken, and/or turkey producers who suffered financial losses due to depopulation related to COVID-19 disruptions, i.e. insufficient access to processing. Losses must have occurred between March 1 and December 26, 2020. Producers must have had  ownership  of the depopulated animals on the day of the loss. In other words, contract growers are not eligible for payment under this program. According to the USDA, "PLIP payments will compensate eligible producers for 80 percent of the loss of the eligible livestock or poultry, and for the cost of depopulation and disposal, based on a single payment rate per head. Any previous payments you received for disposal of your animals

COVID-19 vaccination is underway in Minnesota and other states. Do you have questions about the vaccine, like: Is it safe and effective? Can a person get COVID-19 from the vaccine? Who should get the vaccine? When is it your turn to receive the vaccine?  Answers to these questions, and many more, along with COVID-19 vaccine resources can be found on the Upper Midwest Agricultural Safety and Health Center (UMASH) website (umash.umn.edu/covid-19-vaccine) . National Pork Board also has a great fact sheet covering the eight things producers should know about the COVID-19 vaccine . In Minnesota, Governor Tim Walz announced progress of the COVID-19 vaccination as well as the timeline for other phases on February 25. Details on the vaccination phases are available on Minnesota’s COVID-19 Response website . All Minnesotans are encouraged to sign up for the Vaccine Connector to stay informed on their eligibility and get connected to vaccine opportunities once they become eligible.

By Megan Roberts, Ag Business Management Extension Educator After months and months of negotiations, Congress passed a new COVID-19 relief bill as part of a larger end-of-year federal appropriations bill. The bill, H.R. 133 , known as the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAC), 2021, was passed in a late night legislative session on December 21, 2020. The president then signed the bill into law on December 28, 2020. The law notably changes the tax treatment of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) with just a few days left in the calendar year. Other parameters of the law of importance to farmers and other small business owners include a second round of PPP loans, new funding for targeted Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) advances, an infusion of new dollars to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and continuation of several COVID-19 related employee tax credits. Not connected directly to business finances, but likely relevant to many reading this post, the law also

On Tuesday, November 10th Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) announced pig farmers impacted by COVID-19 supply chain back-ups may be eligible for cost-share funds available for COVID-19 related losses. The MDA's Hog Depopulation Cost-Share program is available to provide financial assistance to pig farmers that had to depopulate pigs being raised in Minnesota. Pig farmers includes both independent growers and integrators. Funding for this cost-share program is through the CARES Act and is part of the $7.7 million plan announced earlier by Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan to support agricultural producers, meat processors, and farmers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To be eligible, pigs must have been depopulated between March 2, 2020 and September 30, 2020. Depopulation must have been performed under the guidance of an accredited veterinarian. See MDA's Hog Depopulation Cost-Share program webpage for complete details. Applications are due December 1, 2020

By Megan Roberts, Extension educator, meganr@umn.edu You’ve likely seen that both the Minnesota state legislature and the federal government passed bills in response to the COVID-19 situation. But what do these policies mean financially for hog producers? This article offers a short summary of some of the recent legislation. Federal programs The Families FIRST Act requires all employers to offer paid sick time for eligible absences related to COVID-19 . Farmers are not exempt from this requirement, but there is federal financial support to help offset the potential payroll costs of paid sick time.

As per the Governor’s Executive Order 20-74 all critical businesses, including farms (of any size) and other agricultural businesses that were designated critical businesses are required to develop and implement a COVID-19 Preparedness Plan by June 29th. Do you have your plan? If not, here are resources, including a template to assist you in creating a plan. Plans do not need to be submitted, but must be communicated with all working on the farm and posted in a manner that is accessible for all to review, and be made available to the Department of Labor and Industry upon request. Other resources: Q & A for Farm COVID-19 Preparedness Plans COVID-19 FAQ for farms regarding cleaning and sanitizing, masks, and gloves and other FAQ UMN Extension horticulture team has created a series of short COVID-19 videos to provide science-based information on transmission of the disease and how to reduce risks on farms National Pork Board guidance for preparing and responding to a positive c

The University of Minnesota Extension Swine Team has created a video on how to butcher a pig for home use. With COVID-19 causing reduced operations at many pork processing facilities, pig farmers are experiencing a bottleneck of pigs on farms causing them to look for alternative market options. One option is for a farmer to sell a live pig directly to a consumer. The consumer typically would book an appointment with a local small scale meat processor in Minnesota to get the pig butchered, but the problem is when the video was recorded (May 22, 2020) many small scale meat processors are booked out for months. With no space available at a local processor and a pig that is ready for butchering, many people are choosing to butcher the pig themselves. With few Extension resources available on how to butcher a pig for home use, Sarah Schieck Boelke and her colleagues, Ryan Cox, Dallas Dornink and Lee Johnston created a video on how to butcher a pig for home use, including human saf

The MN Board of Animal Health (MNBAH) has updated its carcass disposal resources for swine producers. There are centralized carcass disposal sites that are free for producers to dispose of their pigs. Producers must contact the MNBAH to setup a drop-off appointment. Connect with MN BAH Call Carcass Assistance Hotline at 651-201-6041 to: Ask questions Schedule one-on-one consultation about carcass disposal options Schedule drop-off at a centralized site Individuals can also fill out MNBAH online form to request a call back from them. Other resources MN BAH can help with MN BAH has a list of companies willing to contract haul carcasses if you don't have a truck to haul carcasses. View their list of trucking contacts . MN BAH has a list of companies selling wood chips or other composting material. View their list of carbon contacts .

By: Lee Johnston, swine Extension specialist, Pedro Urriola, swine associate professor and Sarah Schieck Boelke, swine Extension educator The Situation:  Pigs in an outdoor pen COVID-19 has disrupted pig harvest at commercial packing plants in the spring of 2020. Pig farmers are offering live pigs at or near market weight to neighbors, consumers, and community members at very low prices. Consumers that purchase live pigs are arranging harvest and processing at local meat lockers. A list of small locker plants can be found on Minnesota of Department of Ag's website . Due to great demand on meat locker services, consumers may need to wait several days to several weeks before pigs can be harvested. During this wait, consumers will need to care for heavy pigs to maintain pig welfare, control pig growth to prevent them from getting too big, and preserve pork quality. Below are some tips to achieve these objectives assuming pigs weigh at least 240 lbs. Feeding: Commerci

Are you impacted by pork plant closures due to COVID-19 and have pigs scheduled to ship in the near future and wondering what to do? Check out this resource for what to do if your pork packing plant is closed.

Dr. Montserrat Torremorell (College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota), Dr. Gordon Spronk (Pipestone Veterinary Services), and Dr. Tom Wetzell (Swine Veterinary Consultant) have been busy recording podcasts in collaboration with SwineCast to discuss the COVID-19 situation and how it is affecting the pork industry.

During these difficult times, it is important for farmers to take care of themselves and their families. The University of Minnesota Extension’s farm and rural stress programs offer resources for those dealing with farming’s current challenges and struggles. The Minnesota Farm and Rural Helpline (833-600-2670) can be called 24/7 for a confidential and free chat with trained staff and volunteers. Other Minnesota Department of Ag farm and rural stress resources can be found on their website . Mobile crisis teams are available in every Minnesota county with crisis team counselors who are able to respond quickly and provide in-person, short-term counseling or mental health services during a crisis or emergency. Calls are answered immediately 24 hours/day.

The Minnesota and federal government have recently passed several major economic stimulus acts related to the COVID-19 response. The laws have major financial implications for individuals and businesses, including farmers. University of Minnesota Extension Ag Business Management Educator Megan Roberts wrote COVID-19 response: How the Families First and CARES Act affect farm businesses . Check it out to learn more and how to apply. The initial funding of $349 billion ran out in less than 14 days, so be sure to act on it sooner rather than later.

The Minnesota Department of Health, Minnesota Department of Agriculture and Board of Animal Health have jointly released guidance for farms to help protect family members and employees from COVID-19, as well as protocols for working through a positive test for an employee on the farm. You can find the resource on Minnesota Board of Animal Health’s website .

With the COVID-19 crisis resulting in closures of pork processing plants, pig farms are experiencing bottleneck of live pigs. To accommodate this bottleneck of pigs on farms, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has created a fact sheet providing guidance on how to notify the MPCA with requests via the COVID-19 email portal for approval to exceed permit numbers or exceed 1,000 animal units without obtaining an NPDES or SDS permit in total confinement facilities for up to 45 days. This guidance is specific to swine. Here is a PDF document of a template to use when submitting your request.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is working to identify opportunities for livestock owners who need meat processing assistance for a small number of animals (5-10) due to pork packing plant closure. Options include plants that could move from “custom” to “equal to” and federally inspected processors that may have extra capacity. If producers need animal processing help they should contact Jim Ostlie: 320-842-6910; jim.ostlie@state.mn.us Courtney VanderMey: 651-201-6135; Courtney.VanderMey@state.mn.us

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is offering financial and technical assistance to livestock producers for animal mortality disposal resulting from impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Producers facing livestock depopulation should contact their local NRCS field office with any questions and to file for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) by submitting an application to their local NRCS field office . Applications are currently being accepted. Limited funds are available so contact your local NRCS field office sooner rather than later.

Some pigs may need to be euthanized as a last resort option due to pork packing plant closure. Be sure to consult with your herd veterinarian and use euthanasia methods that comply with the current American Association of Swine Veterinary (AASV) guidelines for euthanasia in the On-Farm Euthanasia of Swine publication . The AASV has provided updated guidance related to swine depopulation. Producers needing to depopulate due to pork packing plant closures should contact Minnesota Board of Animal of Health carcass disposal contact to be sure euthanasia methods are not only following AASV guidelines but more importantly, that carcass disposal methods are approved for Minnesota.

Before producers start depopulating because of packing plant closure they must contact Minnesota Board of Animal Health carcass disposal to be sure carcass disposal methods are approved for Minnesota. The Minnesota Board of Animal Health (MN BAH) has a Carcass Disposal Resource Guide to help farmers know the options and methods of approved carcass disposal in Minnesota. The MN BAH webpage for carcass disposal has contact information for disposal experts and rendering companies and information for different carcass disposal options.

The National Pork Board has a webpage dedicated to COVID-19 resources for pork producers . It is www.pork.org/covid-19 . There you will find information for: Center for Disease Control (CDC) Farm Emergency Planning Resources Resources such as biosecurity for COVID-19, EPA disinfectant list for COVID-19 and much more Newsletter and text alert sign-up