Minn. pork producers: It's H1N1, not swine flu you idiots
|Photo by Littletowngirl|
But in case you were wondering, the name "swine flu" really doesn't mean you can get it from eating pork products, sleeping in beds with pigs or generally living a sloppy lifestyle. So fry up that porkchop, bunker down in your quarantine apartment and wait out this pending epidemic. Coughing flu patients won't find you there quietly oinking.
Here is what the Minnesota Pork Producers Association wants you to know:
Referring to the global influenza virus by its viral strain "H1N1 flu" rather than "swine flu" more accurately communicates the human-to-human transmission of the illness, according to David Preisler, Executive Director of the Minnesota Pork Producers Association.And you can thank Minnesota Public Radio's "In the Loop" for some pretty hilarious fear mongering in their " Don't cough on me, Alejandro" video:
The H1N1 flu virus that infects humans has not been identified in hogs. The proper naming of the H1N1 flu virus should reduce public confusion by reassuring consumers that H1N1 is not transmitted through pork or pigs and it is not a food safety issue.
"Pork is perfectly safe to eat," Preisler said. "Federal and state government agencies' can focus their resources on public education to reduce the flu virus transmission."
Preisler reminds consumers that Minnesota pork producers are committed to food safety, public health and animal care. Modern pork production practices keep the animals clean, safe and provide protection from predators, disease introduction and weather extremes.
"Pork producers work extremely hard to care for their animals and there is no food safety issues with fresh pork and pork products with respect to the H1N1 virus," Preisler said.