Researchers say they have confirmed that hog feed can be a carrier of the porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), which has killed millions of piglets since May 2013, says The Pig Site, an Internet news site. The work was conducted by South Dakota State University and Pipestone Veterinary Services. More than 6,300 cases of PEDV have been reported in the United States. In a paper published in BMC Veterinary Research, investigators describe using paint rollers to collect left-over bits of feed from three farms that suffered a PEDV outbreak after a feed delivery.
The virus was identified in the feed and it sickened young pigs when it was fed to them. The source of the contamination of the feed was not clear. “Further studies should focus on
understanding the possibility of post-processing contamnation as well as evaluating the ability of intervention strategies, i.e. the application of heat and pressure through the pelleting process and/or the inclusion of select feed additives which may have anti-viral effects, for reduction of this risk,” said the authors.