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Develop methodology to determine farm status, and evaluate the effects of herd management on bacterial and parasitic zoonotic pathogens transmitted through animal manure in relation to environment and food safety. Evaluate the effects of potential solutions to control pathogens on the total production enterprise and the feasibility of practical management changes. Provide strategies and decision aid tools for dairy producers that minimize and (or) eliminate zoonotic pathogens which may enter the environment.
Evaluate different types of dairy farm management practices, that is, production risk factors, for likelihood of affecting pathogen transmission in manure, using marker organisms to trace pathogens in the environment. Factors include animal density, housing systems, sanitation and biosafety practices, feed ingredients and amounts, manure management, seasonality, weather, and land site layout, configuration, and usage in relation to water movement, roads, and houses. Evaluate the effectiveness of potential solutions to decrease transmission of zoonotic pathogens considering all components/factors essential for an economically viable dairy enterprise. Technologies for reducing food safety and environmental impact may include those developed through team research on digestive and post-digestive processes, through factors such as feed composition and management, enteric physiology, and exogenous factors. Provide dairy producers strategies and decision aid tools that minimize and (or) eliminate zoonotic pathogens which may enter the environment and impact food safety.