Producers, manure handlers and land owners need to work together to reduce the risk of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus during manure application season. SDSU Extension Environmental Quality Engineer Erin Cortus says prior to hauling some cleaning steps should be followed.

Cortus says heating livestock trailers can be done to help deactivate the PED virus, but that process takes time.

Cortus says it’s especially important to plan for transporting manure ahead of time and communicate well with outside companies that may be hired to do the hauling.

Other key cleaning principles to keep in mind are to remove organic material prior to washing, after washing allow the equipment to dry before applying any disinfectant, as excess water can dilute the disinfectant and make sure and follow the label for any disinfectant.