When residues are found in meat or milk products, MDA Dairy and Meat Inspectors respond quickly. Livestock producers, feed mills, and veterinarians can face stiff consequences for allowing residues to occur. These range from monetary penalties to losing permission to sell milk or meat, either temporarily or permanently. The MDA has the authority to suspend or revoke licenses or permits from feed mills and dairy farms if they are not handling veterinary drugs responsibly. Learn more about avoiding drug residues in meat (pdf) and penalties for drug residues in milk (pdf).
Dairy Inspection:
- Conduct on-farm inspections of dairy producers, including drug storage and labeling practices
- Inspect processing facilities
- Oversee testing of milk for antibiotics
Meat Inspection:
- Inspect slaughter and processing facilities to ensure animals are handled humanely and food is produced in a safe and hygienic manner
- Sample both suspect and random carcasses to test for drug residue violations during slaughter inspections
Milk:
- Sample and test every load of milk entering milk processing facilities
- Sample and test milk from individual farms
- Sample and test finished dairy products
Meat:
- Sample and test carcasses in slaughter plants
When residues are found in meat or milk products, MDA Dairy and Meat Inspectors respond quickly. Livestock producers, feed mills, and veterinarians can face stiff consequences for allowing residues to occur. These range from monetary penalties to losing permission to sell milk or meat, either temporarily or permanently. The MDA has the authority to suspend or revoke licenses or permits from feed mills and dairy farms if they are not handling veterinary drugs responsibly. Learn more about avoiding drug residues in meat (pdf) and penalties for drug residues in milk (pdf).
Investing in preventative management reduces the likelihood that chemical pesticides will be needed. There are many strategies to make a location unfavorable to pests; details based on location can be found in the list below.
Investing in preventative management reduces the likelihood that chemical pesticides will be needed. There are many strategies to make a location unfavorable to pests; details based on location can be found in the list below.
-
Regular scouting, or monitoring, of an area for pests helps catch problems early. The Pesticide Environmental Stewardship has more information on scouting/monitoring techniques. Managing a small outbreak of pests is easier than managing an outbreak that has spread undetected. A critical part of scouting is accurately identifying what you find. Sometimes a pest may look very similar to a beneficial predator, and effective management options often differ greatly depending on the pest. Online tools from university and government websites, such as the University of Minnesota Extension, are helpful for identifying pests.
-
Regular scouting, or monitoring, of an area for pests helps catch problems early. The Pesticide Environmental Stewardship has more information on scouting/monitoring techniques. Managing a small outbreak of pests is easier than managing an outbreak that has spread undetected. A critical part of scouting is accurately identifying what you find. Sometimes a pest may look very similar to a beneficial predator, and effective management options often differ greatly depending on the pest. Online tools from university and government websites, such as the University of Minnesota Extension, are helpful for identifying pests.
Diversifying the methods you use to fight pests keeps them from finding ways to overcome your management strategies. Stacking multiple management tools can make it even harder for pests to survive. Details about management tools for different locations can be found below while more general ideas about management tools can be found on the Pesticide Environmental Stewardship website.
Diversifying the methods you use to fight pests keeps them from finding ways to overcome your management strategies. Stacking multiple management tools can make it even harder for pests to survive. Details about management tools for different locations can be found below while more general ideas about management tools can be found on the Pesticide Environmental Stewardship website.
Sometimes pests never reach levels that threaten yield, profit, or health. Managing low levels of pests with chemicals is unnecessary and sometimes backfires, causing pests to flare up. Years of research goes into determining when pest levels are unacceptable and require chemical management; those levels are called thresholds. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Cropwatch provides more detail on how thresholds are calculated.
