Cattlegrower.com has this thought-provoking blog entry Saturday, May 2, 2009. The author is Chad Golladay.
With
massive concentrations of farm animals within which to mutate, these
new swine flu viruses in North America seem to be on an evolutionary
fast track, jumping and reassorting between species at an unprecedented
rate.
Sounds
scary enough. But before we start quarantining every piece of ham and
bacon in sight, let’s look at what other public health experts have
been saying.
Dr.
Anne Schuchat dispelled pork contamination rumors at the first Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) press briefing on Thursday:
You
know, when you hear the word swine influenza you think about swine and
many people wonder can you get this from eating pork? The answer is no
you can't get swine flu from eating pork or from eating pork products.
So that's not something that you need to worry about.
The CDC quickly reiterated Schuchat’s point in a Q&A on its website:
Can I get swine influenza from eating or preparing pork?
No.
Swine influenza viruses are not spread by food. You cannot get swine
influenza from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled
and cooked pork products is safe.
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack concurred in a statement on behalf of the Department of Agriculture yesterday:
According
to scientists at USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, swine flu viruses are not transmitted by food so you cannot
get swine flu from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly
handled and cooked pork or pork products is safe. Cooking pork to an
internal temperature of 160°F kills all viruses and other foodborne
pathogens.
The World Health Organization also joined the chorus:
Is it safe to eat pork and pork products?
Yes.
Swine influenza has not been shown to be transmissible to people
through eating properly handled and prepared pork (pig meat) or other
products derived from pigs.
Finally, President Obama assured Americans this morning that the new virus strain is no cause for alarm.
So
if it’s impossible to contract swine flu from eating or handling cooked
pork, why is it called “swine flu? in the first place” The World
Organization for Animal Health in Paris (the "OIE," in its French
acronym) has an interesting answer: It shouldn’t be.
The
flu virus spreading around the world should not be called "swine flu"
as it also contains avian and human components and no pig was found ill
with the disease so far, the World Animal Health body said on Monday.
A more logical name for it would be "North-American influenza."
Renaming
the virus makes sense to us, but don’t expect to hear much logic from
HSUS. To the animal rights giant, the tragic but minimal death toll in
Mexico is an opportunity to stoke fears of animal agriculture -- and
avoid letting a precious crisis go to waste.
Michael
Greger’s anti-pork panic is just the latest example of why dietary
zealots shouldn’t be mistaken for reliable health experts. The modern
farming practices that HSUS condemns as a source of the swine flu virus
are probably humans’ best firewall against the disease. Modern farming
keeps animals in controlled environments, where they are far less
susceptible to contagion and pandemics. “Free-range” pork, on the other
hand, is more likely to spread diseases through communal contact and
uncontrolled contact with people.
Source: The Center for Consumer Freedom