PHOTO’S: ATELIER 68
INTERVIEW ▶▶▶ Hans Nauwynck
“Veterinary virology is ahead in tackling viruses”
The approach to viruses in animal husbandry is better than the approach in human medicine. Human virology can learn a lot from that field, says veterinary virologist Hans Nauwynck.
BY HANS SIEMES C
ovid-19 has put virology in the spotlight. One virus expert after another appears on television, almost all of them authorities in the field of human viruses. The experience gained in tackling viruses in livestock and
pets is hardly discussed, even though there is a lot to be gained from that, says scientist Hans Nauwynck. “The way in which the veterinary world successfully keeps viruses under control is an example for human virology. If the Covid-19 virus had only struck in pig farming, it would probably not have spread as fast as it has now in humans.” Hans Nauwynck has another message. He is extremely annoyed by the allegation that modern livestock farming is the cause of all pandemics and must therefore be curbed or eliminated. “Celebrities, politicians, writers and journalists just shout. Mostly nonsense. They have no clue what they are talking about. It is true that a virus can circulate in a barn with many animals in it but you can tackle this in that one barn with the necessary bio- security measures. Blaming all the diseases in the world on live- stock farming is ridiculous. It is correct that viruses can transfer from animals to humans but that mainly concerns wild animals. Intensive livestock farming, which also falls victim to many virus introductions from the wild, is doing everything it can to prevent and control these types of infections.”
Then what about the minks? Hans Nauwynck: “Remarkable. Minks proved to be excellent hosts for Covid-19. They were infected by humans and not the other way around. The animals were culled because they were a danger to humans due to the formation of new variants. Mink farming fell victim to Covid-19 in humans. This was never
properly communicated. From an ethical point of view, it made sense to stop these mink farms”.
What does that complete control consist of? “Biosecurity in intensive livestock farming has become a com- pletely logical concept. Mind you, this does not include hobby farmers who can cause a lot of problems. Consider, for example, avian influenza. In order to enter a barn on an intensive pig farm, you must go through hygiene locks. Filters on the ventila- tion block, everything. Livestock farms are highly insulated from the outside world. “In addition, there is a well-connected identification and regis- tration (I&R) system: every animal, every farm, every transport has a number by which they can be traced. It is completely con- trolled. Transport of an animal is rare and when it is transported, you must comply with all sorts of rules. It is all set up to try to keep viruses out. You cannot say the same about humans. Only the I&R (passport, tickets) works. The rest (travel, contacts) much less so. In fact, it stops there. Humans travel freely around the world. In this way, we spread viruses all over the world in no time, as Covid-19 has now shown us.” “With livestock, the virus would never have circulated so quickly. There is no mass travel. If someone wants to catch a flight, they should first check their health and make sure they are virus-free. People who are sick and shedding virus should not fly. Flying is not only an enivronmental but also a sanitary problem. Aimless human travel makes the world one big barn in which a virus has free rein. The question is, who has the courage to address this at the highest levels of public health? Blaming livestock farming is too easy; discussing burning questions in humans is often avoided. After all, animals have no voting rights.”
▶ POULTRY WORLD | No. 10, 2021 7
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