1. Finland confirms first-ever African swine fever case
Goal is to determine the prevalence of the disease in wild boars in the area and to prevent its spread across the country.
By Ann Hess,Content Producer
National Hog Farmer
July 31, 2026
Finland has recorded its first occurrence of African swine fever in three dead wild piglets near the Russian border. The wild boar remains, found near Vaalimaa, Virolahti, were delivered by a local to the Finnish Food Authority.
The Finnish Food Authority is working to verify the preliminary results with the European Union's reference laboratory in Spain. In the meantime, measures to limit the spreading of the disease have been taken immediately.
This is the first time ASF has been detected in Finland, despite the disease's rapid spread in recent years to neighboring Poland, Russia, Latvia and Lithuania, as well as Estonia. In nearby Sweden, ASF was first detected in a dead wild boar in September 2023. By September 2024, the country was officially recognized as ASF-free by the World Organisation for Animal Health and the European Union.
2. USDA Confirms Detection of Classical Scrapie in a Slaughtered Sheep
APHIS Stakeholder Registry
July 31, 2026
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed classical scrapie in a sheep slaughtered at a facility in Oregon. Final diagnostic results and genotype analysis were completed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL), with confirmatory testing indicating classical scrapie. As required, APHIS has notified the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) of the confirmed detection.
Classical scrapie is a fatal, degenerative prion disease of sheep and goats. Prior to this confirmation, the United States had gone more than 5 years without a case. The United States was positioned to meet WOAH's 7-year benchmark for self-declared scrapie freedom in January 2028. This confirmed detection could reset that timeline and may push the earliest possible date for national scrapie-free status to approximately 2033.
APHIS and State animal health officials have initiated an epidemiological investigation to determine the flock of origin. The affected animal did not have an ear tag, which may limit traceability and highlights the critical importance of strong animal identification practices nationwide. To support the investigation, NVSL will conduct tissue-matching and parentage testing on the affected sheep and two additional animals from the same accession.
APHIS expects minimal impact on trade. Most countries restrict live animal exports only from affected flocks or premises, and products such as wool remain unaffected.
USDA encourages producers to reinforce key practices that have advanced scrapie eradication efforts nationwide:
Strict compliance with ear tagging and traceability requirements to ensure exposed animals can be accurately tracked.
Robust surveillance participation, including submission of clinical suspects and routine monitoring.
Use of genetically resistant breeding stock, which significantly reduces disease susceptibility and depopulation needs.
Continued partnership with APHIS and State officials to support investigation and long-term freedom efforts.
3. High hopes for USDA-funded study on foggers to fight bird flu
Team will test novel antiviral fogging device using hydrogenated catmint oil to keep viral particles from propagating.
Purdue University
Feedstuffs
July 31, 2026
The interior of a commercial poultry house is a high-density place where a single particle of an airborne respiratory virus can replicate quickly, infecting and sickening all the birds within days. Right now, when highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) strikes, farmers have no choice but to depopulate their entire flock, and often those on neighboring farms as well, to halt the spread of the deadly disease.
Imagine, however, if poultry producers could deploy a device that cleanses the air and surfaces of their facilities with no harm to the chickens. As the birds feed and move through the litter, an automated system emits a fine, pressurized mist that blankets the facility at precise intervals, destroying HPAI virus particles before they can harm the birds' respiratory tracts.
That's a scenario that Dr. Ekramy Sayedahmed, assistant professor of poultry medicine in the Purdue University Department of Comparative Pathobiology, hopes will come true one day. With support from a new $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service, he's collaborating with university and industry partners on an innovative technology. The team will test a novel antiviral fogging device using hydrogenated catmint oil, a natural compound, to target viral particles and keep them from propagating.
Full text: https://www.feedstuffs.com/poultry/high-hopes-for-usda-funded-study-on-foggers-to-fight-bird-flu
4. UC Davis researchers track rising pelvic organ prolapse cases
Findings highlight the need for further research on direct effects of feed quality and housing sanitation practices on POP incidence.
UC Davis CLEAR Center
By Tracy Sellers
July 31, 2026
At the UC Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine, research often begins with a simple question: what problem in animal health still doesn't have answers? For fourth-year veterinary student Kimberly Aguirre Siliezar, who is focusing on livestock medicine, that question led her deep into an emerging issue in the swine industry-pelvic organ prolapse (POP) in sows-and her research that hopes to help producers by anticipating high risk periods and improve herd sustainability.
Pelvic organ prolapse is a condition in which reproductive or internal organs protrude from the body, has become an increasing concern in swine production. For producers, POP in sows represents a serious welfare and economic challenge-often leading to sow loss, emergency interventions and disruptions in herd productivity. Understanding when and why it occurs can help producers better anticipate high-risk periods and make management decisions that improve animal welfare.
At the UC Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine, research often begins with a simple question: what problem in animal health still doesn't have answers? For fourth-year veterinary student Kimberly Aguirre Siliezar, who is focusing on livestock medicine, that question led her deep into an emerging issue in the swine industry-pelvic organ prolapse (POP) in sows-and her research that hopes to help producers by anticipating high risk periods and improve herd sustainability.
Pelvic organ prolapse is a condition in which reproductive or internal organs protrude from the body, has become an increasing concern in swine production. For producers, POP in sows represents a serious welfare and economic challenge-often leading to sow loss, emergency interventions and disruptions in herd productivity. Understanding when and why it occurs can help producers better anticipate high-risk periods and make management decisions that improve animal welfare.
5. USDA announces $2.4 million in available funding to help support U.S. sheep industry
By Will Anderson
ActionNewsNow.com
July 29, 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The United States Department of Agriculture on Wednesday announced approximately $2.4 million in funding available through the Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program.
The funding will support projects that strengthen and enhance the production and marketing of U.S. sheep and sheep products.
According to the USDA, the program is furthering efforts to put Farmers First by awarding funding that directly benefits sheep producers and to projects that build long-term capacity in rural communities.
6. Maine seeing 'unusually high' number of salmonella infections linked to backyard poultry
By Patty Wight
Maine Public Radio
July 28, 2026
Maine is part of a multi-state outbreak of salmonella infection linked to backyard poultry.
On Maine Calling Tuesday, Stephen Combes of the state CDC cited nearly 30 cases in Maine, and says some people have been hospitalized.
"It's unusually high," he says. "Every year we are included in this outbreak. It starts when people are ordering the baby chicks, usually around springtime."
Combes says that people can get salmonella after handling backyard poultry such as chickens and ducks.
The U.S. CDC says even healthy looking poultry can carry the bacteria. The agency advises washing hands immediately after touching poultry and eggs, and avoiding close facial contact with the birds.