AI Perspective from
Pine View Farms
To our dear customers,
You may have heard on the news about an outbreak of H7N3 avian influenza at a broiler breeder farm in northwest of Regina.
Please remember:
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Avian influenza is primarily a disease of birds, and in this case, this strain is not virulent in people.
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When properly cooked and handled, there is no risk of disease transmission to people through poultry products.
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There is no risk of disease transmission to hatchlings from eggs because the virus would kill the embryo before it hatched - Therefore, no hatched birds carry the strain.
At Pine View Farms, bird welfare and food safety are of utmost concern. We have the following safeguards in place at all times on our farm:
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We follow On Farm Food Safety Assurance Protocols so that everything is recorded and traceable for our poultry. These protocols include buffer zones around poultry growing areas, limited barn access and cleanliness
protocols to minimize risk.
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Healthy birds are also a result of providing them with nutritionally balanced, healthy feed, clean water, fresh air and a low stress environment.
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Our processing plant is government inspected i.e. the CFIA examines every bird we process.
If you have any questions, please call or e-mail any time. Further details about avian influenza can be found at the CFIA's website at www.inspection.gc.ca or Chicken Farmers of Canada at www.chicken.ca.
We would like to assure you that although we are concerned, particularly for the farmer involved in this case, it's farming as usual here at Pine View Farms. We look forward to seeing you throughout the fall!
Kevin & Melanie Boldt
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Pine View from the air.