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Swine veterinarians and researchers are encouraged to submit proposals for BIVI PRRS Research Awards as the Company provides $75,000 to fund three porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) research studies for the 12th year.
The threat from new or evolving swine diseases serves as a daily reminder to producers and veterinarians of the importance of ongoing applied research in finding effective solutions. For a dozen years, the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., (BIVI) Advancement in PRRS Research Awards has helped find practical approaches to managing PRRS, a disease costing US swine producers more than $664 million annually in lost production.
Since 2003, BIVI has contributed more than $900,000 through its Advancement in PRRS Research Awards to fund 37 selected research programmes (AASV), results from the BIVI-funded research studies have contributed significantly to the industry’s understanding of the disease and how to more effectively manage it.
“After more than 20 years in North America, PRRS continues to be a major disease challenge for swine veterinarians and producers, and during this time we have learned much about the virus, how it is transmitted and how to better control it,” Sprague says. “Collaborative applied field research will provide the keys to effectively control and eradicate PRRS, helping swine producers raise healthier, more profitable pigs.”
For its 2015 PRRS Research Awards, the company is again seeking study proposals from swine veterinarians, diagnosticians, and public and private veterinary researchers in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Selected research programs are designed to investigate new ways to diagnose, control and eradicate one of the world’s most costly swine diseases.
Boehringer Ingelheim encourages people interested in submitting research award proposals to do so by 1 January 2015, for complete details please click here.
Research award recipients will be announced at the AASV annual meeting in Orlando next March. Proposals will be reviewed by an independent scientific board and awarded based on established criteria including potential economic impact to the swine industry, originality and scientific quality and probability of success in completing the year-long study.
This year, BIVI recognised three veterinarians and researchers for the 2014 Advancement in PRRS Research Awards program in Dallas. These recipients were:
- Brad Leuwerke, DVM, Swine Vet Center, St. Peter, Minnesota
- Andres Perez, DVM, Ph.D., University of Minnesota, St. Paul and
- Jeff Zimmerman, DVM, PhD, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.