Canadian Beef Cattle On-Farm Biosecurity Standard

Biosecurity, a National Standard and Canada's Beef Cattle Industry

• Biosecurity
• A National Standard

Biosecurity

Biosecurity Is

Those practices that prevent or mitigate disease from entering, spreading within or being released from¹ operations that may contain livestock.

There are many definitions for biosecurity, several of which were considered in developing this Standard. The context of these definitions varies significantly. Some have application to the country as a whole, while others have an industry-wide application. The definition above has application to the on-farm context for which this Standard is intended, and was readily understood in consultations with producers.

A similarly broad definition of disease is also used throughout:

The introduction, transmission, spread, and/or existence of a range of pests, pathogens and other disease causing agents, including toxins. The emphasis of this Standard is upon infectious disease.

The relatively general nature of the definitions for biosecurity (the practices) and disease (the risk being managed) has led to a Standard based upon principles or guidelines and target outcomes that has broad farm-level application.

Biosecurity and Risk Management

Biosecurity is a form of risk management. The risk in this case is disease and its potential impact on a specific herd or the industry at large. The Standard comprises the management practices used to manage that risk.

The Standard sets out the general guidelines and practices by which producers can manage disease risks in Canada's beef cattle industry. The guidelines and practices were developed collaboratively by industry and government, considering the different types and sizes of operations across the country. In this context, biosecurity is the management of disease risks or disease risk management.

Biosecurity and Its Importance to Individual Producers and to Canada's Beef Cattle Industry

Biosecurity is an important tool that producers can and do use to manage disease in the Canadian beef cattle industry. Diseases such as infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR), bovine viral diarrhea (BVD), mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis (Johne's disease) and neonatal calf diarrhea (scours) are all too familiar to producers throughout the industry and, in many cases, are endemic throughout most of North America. Although these diseases may be eradicated from a particular herd, there is an ongoing risk of re-occurrence that can be managed through biosecurity.

These diseases, along with others, come at a cost to producers, whether measured in terms of dollars and cents, lowered productivity, or animals lost. It is estimated that respiratory disease accounts for 16% of calf loss.² Other estimates suggest that the diarrhea in neonatal calves results in 5% of all calf losses – a figure that increases to 25% when older calves are included.³ When multiplying these losses and their related costs across the more than 80,000 operations that raise beef cattle in Canada, it is clear that reducing the impacts of such diseases may result in significant savings to the industry as a whole.

The same principles that enable producers to better manage the risks of endemic disease within their operations may have a cumulative effect if applied across the industry, and thus facilitate the reduction of diseases that are considered endemic.

Applied across the industry, these principles will also reduce the risk of an emerging disease or a foreign animal disease (FAD), namely, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). An outbreak, particularly one such as FMD, could have devastating impacts on individual operations and on the industry as a whole. It is estimated that the economic impacts of an FMD outbreak in Canada could be reduced from $48 billion to $23 billion, and possibly to $6.6 billion, by the presence of moderately effective, or even highly effective, policies that address zoning, identification and traceability, and biosecurity.⁴

Although the severity and impact of endemic, emerging, and FAD outbreaks may differ, they are all caused by diseases which themselves are caused by organisms. Managing the outbreak, therefore, requires management of the organism. Just as these principles can control and reduce the impacts of endemic diseases, so, too, can they control and reduce the impacts of a FAD or an emerging disease.

1. Jordan L. Points of View, January 2010, Volume 4, Issue 1 - PDF (1.14 mb). Canadian Sheep Federation.

2. Callan R, Garry F. Biosecurity and bovine respiratory disease. Veterinary Clinics of North America: Food Animal Practice 2002;18:57-77.

3. Barrington G, Gay J, Evermann J. Biosecurity for neonatal gastrointestinal diseases. Veterinary Clinics of North America: Food Animal Practice 2002;18:7-34.

4. Potential Economic Impacts of a Foot and Mouth Disease Outbreak. Serecon Management Consultants; 2010.

A National Standard

Who Is This Standard For?

This Standard is for producers and for those who own, manage, or work with beef cattle in Canada.

It is designed for on-farm application in farm-level operations of all types and sizes, and from all regions across Canada. Awareness of the Standard enables individuals within other types of operations in the beef cattle industry to conduct their business in a manner that supports the beef industry's interests in reducing disease.

What Is This Standard For?

This Standard will assist producers and others in the on-farm application of biosecurity on operations of various types and sizes and in all regions of Canada's beef cattle industry. The Standard sets out guidelines through the four basic principles of biosecurity for Canada's beef cattle industry and the target outcomes by which each may be achieved. Applying the principles and achieving the target outcomes of the Standard is intended to reduce the prevalence of existing and endemic diseases in a cost-effective manner and, in doing so, prevent the introduction of new and possible FADs in beef cattle operations across Canada.

The Standard will also be available for consideration by trade and industry officials in other countries seeking to evaluate biosecurity in Canada. In this context, it will be considered together with the range of other biosecurity tools used or being developed in Canada (e.g. border controls, surveillance, and disease control actions), as well as standards for other Canadian commodities, such as poultry, swine, dairy, grains, oilseeds, and potatoes.

How Was the Standard Developed?

The Standard was developed with the help and support of producers, subject matter experts, advisory groups, and leaders in industry and government.

A number of tools and techniques were used during the Standard's development. Listed in greater detail in Schedule 2, these include the following:

• review of cost-benefit considerations of various biosecurity practices and protocols;
• gap analysis relative to existing programming;
• literature review and identification of cited biosecurity practices;
• consultation of producers' current biosecurity practices in Canada's beef industry, using a representative sample of the population of producers in Canada; and
• consultation on a draft Standard, with a cross-section of stakeholder representatives and others engaged in the beef cattle industry.

Format of the Standard for Canada's Beef Cattle Industry

The Standard consists of four principles, in turn supported by a total of 21 target outcomes. These are outcome-based guidelines, and thus indicate the objective or goal, while enabling producers to reach it by using the means most suited to the operation.

Each principle is supported by several paragraphs that indicate the following:

• What is meant or implied by the principle.
• Why the principle is important. A brief explanation is provided, indicating why this particular principle is important to producers and/or the industry at large.
• Target outcomes that describe how the principle may be maintained, each of which is supported by additional information.

What This Standard Is… and What It Is Not

Supporting Information for Producers Who Are Implementing the Standard

A brief Overview is provided within the Standard.

A Biosecurity Implementation Manual that is specific to the Standard and to the beef cattle industry will be available as a separate document. The Biosecurity Implementation Manual sets out additional information on how to apply the principles and target outcomes of the Standard, the additional benefits of applying the Standard, and where to find additional information.

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