Saskatchewan's Minister of Agriculture says the cull line being incorporated into the North 49 sow slaughtering plant in Moose Jaw provides the infrastructure to deal with market disruptions triggered by a foreign animal disease. In response to the threat of African swine fever, the Government of Saskatchewan and Sask Pork have committed $1 million swine disease mitigation, including adding a dedicated cull line into the North 49 processing facility.

Today, Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister David Marit announced $700,000 in funding to support swine disease mitigation efforts. Sask Pork will also be providing $300,000 towards a swine market disruption plan, which will help industry respond to potential market closures due to an animal health emergency event such as African swine fever.

Sask Pork is undertaking a first-of-its-kind in Saskatchewan benchmarking project, thanks to funding from the Agriculture Development Fund (ADF). Sask Pork will receive $150,000 over three years to evaluate antibiotic use on Saskatchewan hog farms.