INDIANAPOLIS —
What’s in a name? Everything if you’re a pork producer and if the name of the newest health scare makes people think twice about eating bacon.
The fast rise in the number of people diagnosed with the so-called “swine flu” over the last week has sent pork futures tumbling and re-awakened bad memories of the 2009 flu pandemic bearing the same name.
Health officials have gone to great lengths to call the new bug by a more official name, the variant influenza A(H3N2v), and to tell people it’s safe to eat pork.
But the people who make their living raising and selling hogs fear its the other label that will stick, pointing to headlines that read: “Swine flu cases surge.”
“It’s amazing the impact of a name,” said Mike Platt, executive director of the Indiana Pork Producers Association.
“It’s all about labeling and perception.”
Indiana is the epicenter of what appears to be a new flu strain that’s been dubbed the “swine flu” for a reason. It has the largest number of confirmed human cases in the United States as of Thursday, at 120
State health officials said all of those people infected with the bug got it from handling sick pigs.
The very first human case of a variant influenza A (H3N2v) was detected in Indiana in July 2011 — found in a child who routinely handled pigs.
The Centers for Disease Control calls the variant influenza A (H3N2v) a “swine virus,” meaning its yet to be detected as being passed from human to human — though it could be soon. The CDC also said this new flu strand carries genetic similarities to the first “swine flu” — the H1N1 virus that sickened hundreds of thousands globally in 2009 and plunged the U.S. pork industry into a financial crisis when people stopped eating pork.
Now, as back then, health officials are saying there’s absolutely no reason to stop eating pork or visiting pigs. But now, as back then, the message may not be getting through.
The human foot traffic along Champions Row in the swine barn at the Indiana State Fair has dropped dramatically since Monday when fair officials sent home all of the 4-H exhibitors’ pigs after fever — a sign of the virus — was detected in a handful of hogs.
As alarming for people like Platt are the comments from visitors to the Indiana State Fair Pork Tent, where volunteers are serving up the usually popular pork burgers. “They come in and ask, ‘Are you sure this is safe to eat?’ ” Platt said.
Indiana Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman donned her “Indiana Pork” embroidered shirt to visit the fair Thursday. Skillman has a life-size sculpture of a pig outside her Statehouse office. She’s been worried that this summer’s historic drought, with its huge impact on livestock feed prices, could mean financial calamity for the state’s pork industry.
Unlike most crop farmers that have crop insurance that covers their losses, most hog farmers are without.
Now she sees visions of the summer of 2009, when Indiana’s pork industry, which employs about 13,000 people, took a massive financial hit when people stopped eating pork.
State agricultural officials estimated pork producers suffered a $50 million loss.
“This can devastate an industry,” Skillman said.
Amy Reel, the spokeswoman for the Indiana State Department of Health, and Denise Derrer, the spokeswoman for the Indiana Board of Animal Health have repeatedly asked members of the media to stop using the label “swine flu” and start using either “variant influenza A” or “H3N2.”
Their pleas aren’t working yet. “We’re trying to do the best we can to keep people informed without instilling unnecessary fear in the public or being unfair to the pork industry,” Derrer said before adding this: “It is safe to eat your bacon, and your ham and the pork burgers at the State Fair.”
Maureen Hayden is the Indiana Statehouse bureau chief for CNHI, the parent company of the Tribune-Star. She can be reached at maureen.hayden@indianamediagroup.com.
News
Just call it A(H3N2v) flu
Pork producers cringe at that other name (rhymes with pine)
- News
-
-
Life-Size Ping Pong: Valley pickleball tourney draws large crowd to Brittlebank Park
It’s been described as “ping pong on steroids.”
Some people call it “life-size ping pong where you stand on the table.” -
Boat trip aims to raise awareness about Lewy Body Dementia
In 2013, the Year of the River, it makes sense to link a grand adventure on the Wabash River with a good cause.
-
Legislature had little taste for alcohol bills
When it comes to alcohol, the 2013 legislative session may be marked more by what it didn’t do to boost booze sales than what it did.
-
STATE OF THE STATEHOUSE: Is it regulation that doesn’t make sense or evening the playing field?
I’m not much of a drinker, so I haven’t spent much time thinking about how Indiana’s alcohol laws personally impact me, but that changed last fall when my daughter got married.
-
For Piper: Annual ‘Rush the Punter’ event dedicated to Dixie Bee student who died Wednesday after a short illness
Steve Weatherford’s “Rush the Punter” fundraiser at Fairbanks Park on Saturday was dedicated to a little girl who lost her life unexpectedly to pneumonia.
-
Vigo schools prepare to tighten belts
State funding for the Vigo County School Corp. will remain “pretty flat” for the next two years, said Donna Wilson, chief financial officer.
-
Veterans take to the trees
Cristal Bednar took photos of her husband, Justin, as he laboriously climbed his way up a “Dangle-Duo” to get to a zipline at Indiana State University’s Sycamore Outdoor Center.
-
Property owner seeks halt to Hulman Lake dam project
A Terre Haute property owner is seeking an injunction that would at least temporarily halt the city’s work on the Hulman Lake dam project.
-
Tornado veterans balance preparedness, practicality
Few things in nature are less predictable than a tornado. They can form quickly. They strike weirdly, leveling one building while leaving its neighbor untouched. They can fling a car a half-mile and turn a piece of lumber into a wall-piercing missile.
-
ISU unveils interactive Bayh Family Legacy Wall at school
A who’s who of Indiana Democrats paid tribute to Evan Bayh and several generations of the Bayh family Friday during a dedication of a new interactive display at Indiana State University.
-
Can you smell me now?
A contraband cell phone has been discovered by the Vigo County Jail’s youngest and most unique officer.
-
GIVING BACK: Steve Weatherford buys shoes for kids day before charity run
Terre Haute’s Steve Weatherford, punter for the 2012 Super Bowl champion New York Giants, showed once again his generosity Friday by donating new athletic shoes to more than two dozen Vigo County kids.
-
N.Y. Giants honor Weatherford as ‘Man of the Year’
Dan Tanoos, superintendent of Vigo County schools, remembers the first time he saw Steve Weatherford as a freshman at Terre Haute North Vigo High School.
-
Sunday recital at The Woods
A recital featuring songs from well-known composers is at 7 p.m. Sunday in the Church of the Immaculate Conception at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.
-
Police investigating rash of car window shootings
Terre Haute Police are investigating a rash of shootings that have shattered car windows throughout the city.
-
City hospitals get passing grades for patient safety
Two Terre Haute hospitals have been ranked for patient safety by an independent organization that assesses safety, quality and affordability of healthcare for Americans.
-
Three from Operation Turn and Burn sentenced in federal court
Three co-conspirators in a Wabash Valley methamphetamine trafficking ring were sentenced this week to several years in federal prison.
-
Skateboarders, BMX bike riders working to improve area of city park they use
The sound of small wheels rolling across smooth concrete fills the air, accented by the clacking noise of a wooden skateboard coming to an instant stop on a metal edge before rolling on again.
-
Indiana State to host 2014 MVC baseball tourney
Build it… and they will come. The Missouri Valley Conference and Indiana State University made that famous line from the movie “Fields Of Dreams” reality Thursday.
-
Overlay recommended for 812 area code
The state agency that represents Hoosier utility customers is calling for a ten-digit solution to southern Indiana’s vanishing supply of 812 area code telephone numbers.
-
Elementary school saddened by student’s death
A 9-year-old Dixie Bee Elementary student died unexpectedly Wednesday evening as the result of pneumonia, said Vigo County Coroner Susan Amos on Thursday.
-
Vermillion CSX crossings undergoing maintenance
CSX maintenance crews are working on railroad crossings between Dana and Chrisman, Ill. this week and next, a CSX official said Thursday.
-
Beware of scams everywhere
Ever get a phone call in the middle of the night from a person claiming to be your grandchild, who unfortunately has been jailed in Canada and needs bail money?
-
INDOT to start work on Indiana 163 in Vermillion County
Maintenance crews will begin a pavement preservation project Monday on Indiana 163, between Indiana 63 and the Illinois state line west of Clinton.
-
Union Hospital community garden spots now available
Community gardening spots are now available at the Union Hospital Community Garden for Wabash Valley residents interested in planting and maintaining a garden but may not have the space. The garden is located west of the intersection of North Sixth Street and Seventh Avenue in Terre Haute at 1430 N. Sixth St.
-
Correctional officer remembered at memorial
Greene County native and Wabash Valley Correctional Facility Officer Timothy Betts was honored during a memorial ceremony at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C.
-
Money donated for Dresser sculpture
100+ Women Who Care of Vigo County on Thursday awarded a $20,200 grant to Art Spaces that will help make the Paul Dresser sculpture, “A Song for Indiana,” a reality.
-
Powerball jackpot quickly jumps to $550 million
The Powerball jackpot jumped to $550 million on Thursday — the third largest lottery in history — as dreamers in all but the seven states where the game isn’t played snatched up tickets for the minuscule chance at a life on easy street.
-
About 200 channel catfish find new home in Dobbs Park pond
About 200 channel catfish transferred into a new home at the Dobbs Park pond on Wednesday, but it’s unclear how long they’ll remain there. That depends upon the people fishing.
-
GED grads turn the tassels
Michelle McClendon’s first child was born when she was 15.
She tried to stay in school, but it was just too much, so she dropped out to take care of her daughter. - More News Headlines
-
Raw: Tornado on the Ground in Oklahoma
Raw: Fierce Bombing in Qusair, Syria
RAW: TV Staff Take Cover From Tornado
Raw: Aftermath of Massive Tornado in Oklahoma
Raw: Swarm of Tornadoes Slams Plains
Tornadoes, Storms Strike Midwest
Fatal Hot Air Balloon Accident in Turkey
Raw: House Burns After Massive Oklahoma Tornado
Split-second Choice Ended With NY Student Dead
White House Backs 'Shield Law' for Media
Raw: Accused US Spy Reportedly Leaves Russia
'Babyland': Camp Lejeune's Toxic Legacy?
AP CEO: Records Seizure 'Unconstitutional'
Raw: Heavy Tornado Damage in Shawnee, Okla
Commuters Face Delays After Conn. Train Accident
Raw: Tornadoes Spotted in Kansas
Today in History for May 20th
Analyst: Tumblr Fills Void in Yahoo's Offerings
Obama Exhorts Good Deeds by Morehouse Graduates
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash
RAW: Moore, OK tornado touches down near school
Okla. tornado survivor finds dog buried alive under rubble
Robert Pattinson Moves Out
RAW: Russian dash cam catches car 20 feet in the air
Oklahoma tornado survivor: "Everything is gone"
Khloe Lashes Out at Kim Kardashian's Critics
Couple Argues As Woman's Lover Crawls Out Window
RAW: Brad Paisley Forgets Lyrics To His Own Song
Justin Bieber Gets Booed
New 'Anchorman 2' Trailer, Drake Joins List of Rumored Cameos
Eva Longoria's Wardrobe Malfunction
Heat Star Dwyane Wade Surprises Coral Gables Teen At Prom
Steak n' Shake waitress scores huge tip
Singer Miguel Accidentally Lands on Fan At Billboard Music Awards
Celebs Celebrate the Rise of the Side Butt
Grizzly bear gets up close and personal with camera
Justin Bieber Gets Booed After Winning at the Billboard Awards
Singer forgets lyrics, makes up words to National Anthem
