New fly screen reduces
the risk of infection

SKOV A/S launched a new fly screen that reduces the risk of infection in pig productions.

Viral diseases are a major threat to the global pig industry, as they not only cause pain for the infected animals but also result in severe economic losses for the affected farmer. Nevertheless, many pig farmers are forced to face the reality of viruses such as African Swine Fever (ASF), as various farms across the globe contract viruses every year.

The most common path of infection in pigs is either through direct contact between sick and healthy animals or a more indirect transmission such as contaminated feed, water, vehicles, clothes, etc. However, for some outbreaks, the source of infection is unexplainable, as even farms adhering to strict biosecurity get infected too.

Flies proved to be sources of infection
The unexplainable link between outbreaks in separate farms adhering to strict biosecurity has induced researchers to search for new alternative sources of infection. Flies are one of the objects that have been the center of the investigation, and for several years, researchers have therefore investigated the vectorial potential of flies in the transmission of viral diseases.

Results from a recent experiment conducted by the Danish Veterinary Institute have revealed that flies can transmit ASF viruses if they either bite the pigs or if the pigs eat them. This recent study confirms that flies can transfer viruses from infected farms to non-infected farms under the right conditions, which makes flies a risk factor regarding new infections of viral diseases all over the world.

SKOV's fly screens reduce the entry of flies
The recent research is an incentive to take radical steps to reduce the number of flies entering the livestock houses. One of the means to reduce the entry of flies is to cover the areas where flies access the building. The new DA 1200 fly screen from SKOV is designed to cover the wall inlets in the livestock house so that air intake through the wall inlets would have to pass the fly screen and thus prevents potentially infected flies from entering the house.

There are different fly screens on the market, but SKOV’s product stands out from the other solutions, as it is a standardized solution for wall inlet assembly facilitating both mounting and cleaning of the screens. It is beneficial for the individual farmer since the screens need frequent cleaning to uphold proper ventilation.

The DA 1200 fly screen is released for sale at the end of November and is presented at our booth at the EuroTier show from 13-16 November 2018 or at the Agromek show from 27-30 November 2018. At the Agromek show, the fly screen is a three-star EUR novelty.

Read more about DA 1200 fly screens here.