Feedstuffs in Focus
Feedstuffs in Focus is a weekly look at the hot issues in the livestock, poultry, grain and feed industries. Join us as we talk with industry influencers, experts and leaders about trends and more. Feedstuffs in Focus is produced by the team at Feedstuffs.
Feedstuffs in Focus
Setting the agenda for better swine health
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Endemic disease already steals margins, but a foreign animal disease outbreak could rewrite the rules overnight. From the World Pork Expo in Des Moines, we sit down with Marisa Rotolo, Director of Swine Health for the National Pork Board, and pork producer Paul Ayers to explain why the industry is building a National Swine Health Strategy and why it starts with one simple idea: let producers define the real problems and the practical fixes.
Our Ann Hess digs into what we keep hearing across the pork industry, from PRRS frustration to the ongoing impact of PEDv, and why “moving the needle” matters more than chasing quick wins. Marisa breaks down the strategy’s two core goals: prevent and prepare for foreign animal diseases while reducing the impact of endemic swine diseases that producers battle every day. Paul shares what the swine health advisory committee is doing to keep priorities grounded in what works on farms, with input from operations of different sizes and even the show pig segment.
We also talk about what success actually looks like when goals are ambitious and long-term: sustained producer engagement, industry alignment, and progress you can measure. The conversation closes with the two-pronged plan to get there: targeted swine health research, plus education that turns findings into slat-level solutions, including a National Swine Health Strategy Research Summit to align the research community around shared priorities. If you care about swine biosecurity, disease prevention, and protecting the future of pork production, hit play, subscribe, share this with a producer or vet, and leave a review so more people can find the show.
Disease Threats Facing Pork Producers
SPEAKER_02Pork producers face everyday endemic disease and the moving threat of foreign animal disease that could devastate their operations. The National Pork Board is working with key industry partners, including the National Pork Producers Council and State Pork Association, to develop a comprehensive national swine health strategy.
Welcome, Sponsor, And Guests
SPEAKER_02Welcome to Feet to Dubs in Focus, our podcast. Taking a look at the big issues affecting the livestock, poultry, grain, and animal feed industries. I'm your host, Sarah Muirhead. This episode of Feet to Dubs in Focus is sponsored by United Animal Health, a leader in animal health and nutrition. You can learn more about United Animal Health and how they're working to advance animal science worldwide by visiting their website at unitedanh.com. Joining us from World Pork Expo in Des Moines is Marissa Rotello, Director of Swine Health for the National Pork Board, and Paul Ayers, producer and national pork board member. Paul also is chair of the swine health advisory committee.
Listening First With Producer Questions
SPEAKER_03So, Marissa, let's start with you and give us a little background of why the National Pork Board feel it was so important to focus on swine health.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so in a National Pork Board survey, we saw that 98% of producers feel that swine health is critical to our swine industry. And so at Pork Forum last year, there was an advisement for us to really get in with producers and really understand what are the challenges that they're facing. And so we put together the National Swine Health Strategy where we asked producers two simple questions. What are the challenges, what are the top swine health challenges that you're facing, and what do you want industry to do about it? So it was a really good opportunity for us to hear from producers as National Board Board, and our job is to work for producers, right? So it was a good opportunity to invite producers to tell us what is it that you're dealing with on a day-to-day basis and how can we help you?
SPEAKER_03Speaking of hearing from producers, I mean, producers have been dealing with endemic diseases like PED for years now. How will the National Swine Health Strategy help address these issues?
Two Strategy Goals And Advisory Work
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I think what's different with the National Swine Health Strategy is we're really rallying producers around common goals and priorities. So the two goals of the National Swine Health Strategy are prevent and prepare for foreign animal diseases as well as reducing the impact of endemic diseases. And something that we have done is we've established a swine health advisory committee to provide prioritization and feedback to the National Board Board on what producer needs are and how we can advance towards our long-term goals.
SPEAKER_03So, as a as a committee member chair, who's helping guide that work of the night, the National Swine Health Strategy, and how can producers impact ongoing work?
SPEAKER_00So the swine health advisory committee is made up of producers from across the country, and we really have broad representation from large producers to small to the show pig segment, and the intent is to get feedback on what can be implemented by producers and what makes the most impact on their farms. So the advisory committee has recently met and we've identified five short-term priorities for the National Pork Board to work on.
Why Collaboration And Input Matter
SPEAKER_03So, Maurice, is the National Pork Board working with industry and research partners as well?
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. I think it's important to stress that this is a collaborative effort, right? It's going to take everybody in our industry to work together and make sure that we're doing the best that we can for producers to advance these swine health priorities.
SPEAKER_03Why is producer input so important here?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so at the end of the day, you know, producers are the ones that are faced with the challenges from these uh endemic diseases. So I think it's real important that we understand where the challenges are, but also where are the needs of producers. At the end of the day, the National Pork Board works on behalf of producers. So producer input and feedback is critically important to ensure that we're working in the right direction.
What Success Looks Like On PRRS
SPEAKER_03So I want to ask you both, what does success look like to you? I know I've done a number of interviews this week on PERS alone, and people are like, I wish we could quit talking about it. That maybe that's the goal there. What does success look like to you for this program?
SPEAKER_01I think from my perspective, I think it's really important that we all engage in this process together, right? And so we do have these long-term goals. You mentioned that you know folks are tired of talking about PERS. One of our goals is PERS elimination, another one is PED elimination. And in my mind, success looks like we are moving the needle together. So we might not have an instant solution today, but we have plans in place to advance these and make sure that we get to the end of the finish line. Paul?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I would echo some of what Maurice has said. A key measure of success is having producer engagement and industry alignment around our common goals. Our goals are very long-term in nature, they're very ambitious, so we need to keep our sights set on those. Uh, but it's also important to move the needle forward and continue to make progress.
SPEAKER_03As we wrap up our discussion here, any key takeaways, final thoughts to leave our audience with today?
Research Summit And Farm-Level Education
SPEAKER_01Absolutely. So for me, as I take a step back and you think about the National Swine Health Strategy, I think about it as two prongs. You've got research to advance our knowledge base, and then you have education, translating that research into slat-level solutions. And from the research perspective, what we're focusing on now is a National Swine Health Strategy Research Summit where we're going to get everybody who plays in that research space, level set them, and set the goals and priorities of the National Swine Health Strategy as our North Star.
SPEAKER_00Paul? Yeah, the thing that I think is really important is that producers ask questions, right? When we talk about these ambitious goals, there's a lot of ambiguity and maybe some uncertainty. I would encourage producers to reach out to their State Association, the National Pork Board, ask for help, and continue to provide feedback. We need feedback and direction from producers to advance our strategy. So I think that's critically important.
SPEAKER_03Paul Ayers and Marisa Ratola, thank you so much for joining us today.
SPEAKER_00Thank you.
SPEAKER_02This episode of Feedstood Ups in Focus has been sponsored by United Animal Health, a leader in animal health and nutrition. You can learn more about United Animal Health and how they're working to advance animal science worldwide by visiting their website at
Closing Thanks And Subscribe
SPEAKER_02unitedanh.com. I'm Sarah Muirhead, and you have been listening to Feedstoffs in Focus. If you would like to hear more conversations about some of the big issues affecting the livestock, poultry grain and animal feed industries, subscribe to this podcast on your favorite podcast channel. Until next time, have a great day, and thank you for listening.