Many pig breeding countries have requirements that regulate compliance with biosecurity standards by all market operators. In Ukraine, this issue has not been resolved, despite its importance due to significant epizootic risks, in particular the spread of African swine fever. The only document in which pig farmers can find basic biosafety requirements is the Instruction on the Prevention and Control of African Swine Fever. Those interested in the requirements for the highest level of biosafety should read the "Procedure for determining the separate veterinary and sanitary status of an animal subpopulation of one or more farms with a unified biological safety management system for one or more diseases for which supervision, control and biological safety measures have been introduced", approved by Order of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine No. 239 of 03 March 2019.
The Sectoral Biosafety Standard, which the Association, together with the USDA, is developing as part of the project "Keeping Animals Healthy in Ukraine", is designed not only to provide businesses with the entire list of biosafety rules and measures, but also to provide instructions and practical solutions on how to implement them.
"The experience of conducting biosafety audits since 2015 proves that it is often not enough to have a list of rules, but also to explain how they can be implemented in the company's environment. Taking into account close cooperation with enterprises to identify both best biosecurity practices and gaps in this system, the Association of Ukrainian Pig Breeders is working on a document that will be of maximum practical importance for those who want to get the maximum level of protection for their farm. In addition, the document will be accompanied by video tutorials explaining these requirements and their application. The start of this project is scheduled for early autumn 2024," the AUPB said.
It is worth reminding that the Association of Ukrainian Pig Breeders has been working to improve the biosafety system in Ukraine for about ten years. In particular, as a result of joint efforts, producers have the opportunity to use a biosafety questionnaire to undergo an assessment and receive recommendations for improvement, as well as, starting in 2022, to order biosafety audits to work directly with technical experts.