State says pig virus found on 93 farms in Michigan

4/15/2014
ASSOCIATED PRESS

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — The Michigan agriculture department says a virus that kills piglets at an alarming rate has been found on 93 farms in the state.

According to Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development spokeswoman Jennifer Holton, Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus is deadly to newborn pigs but doesn’t affect the safety of pork nor is it a human health concern.

Holton tells the Kalamazoo Gazette for a story Tuesday that PEDV is “a major economic concern for Michigan’s swine industry.” She says her department is working with farmers and veterinarians to try to reduce the disease’s spread and impact.

A national outbreak of PEDV has killed about 7 percent of the country’s baby pigs.

It first was detected in the U.S. last spring.