Ontario pledges $2M to help stop spread of deadly pig virus

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne said on Tuesday the province will immediately commit $2 million to the Ontario pork industry to help offset costs of dealing with a deadly pig virus.

Wynne said the province will also establish a separate and dedicated biosecurity stream for those in the swine industry.

Hog farmers can apply for funding until March 13.

Ontario hog farmers are being asked to tighten biosecurity measure to prevent a deadly pig virus from spreading further.

Officials said yesterday that a second case of pig epidemic diarrhea has been confirmed and a possible third case is being investigated.

• 2nd case of deadly pig virus confirmed in Ontario
• Eastern Ontario pork producers brace for deadly pig virus

But they insist P-E-D does not affect food safety and is not a risk to human health.

The disease has killed millions of piglets in the U-S and producers here have been bracing for its arrival.

A group representing Ontario's hog farmers warns that should the virus reach other provinces, the country's pork industry could lose some 45-million dollars in just a year.

Ontario Pork says P-E-D is transmitted through contact with manure and producers should make sure trucks, trailers and people are cleaned and disinfected before they arrive on a farm.

Wynne will hold a conference call with national and provincial agriculture ministers Thursday. They will discus a national approach to the virus and talk about what Ontario is already doing.

Wynne said it needs to be stressed that Ontario pork is safe to eat.