PEDV control becomes a regional data-and-movement system

The Wisconsin Pork Association has launched a 24-month pilot programme intended to move regional porcine epidemic diarrhoea virus control from management toward elimination. Announced on 13 October, the project brings together producers, veterinarians and industry partners. Its premise is simple but demanding: an endemic virus cannot be eliminated through isolated decisions at individual farms; it requires comparable information and coordinated action across sites. Wisconsin can build on earlier data. Since 2018, certain pig movements had been subject to PEDV and PRRSV testing, and submitted results were recorded for research. Although that state requirement ended in July 2026, the association is continuing voluntary monitoring. Herds expected to be negative can work toward the voluntary U.S. SHIP PEDV Clean Site status, which requires at least three months of negative results and continued testing under programme standards. A new PEDV Monitored category also provides an entry point. For the meat chain, the news is not a new laboratory test but an organised connection between diagnostics, health status and movement decisions. Site-status sharing can help assess transport and biosecurity risks before they become a supply problem. It does not replace hygiene measures or itself guarantee freedom from infection; rather, it makes the basis for collective decisions visible. The project also serves as a test of transferability. Nebraska and Kentucky are expected to develop initiatives based on Wisconsin’s approach from 2027. If the pilot succeeds, its most useful output will not be a broad success claim but a replicable procedure: which data are needed, who verifies them, how they are communicated and what incentives enable sustained participation.