Scoping review to assess online guidance about poultry farm biosecurity
A lack of detailed implementation guidance may present challenges for poultry farmers seeking to learn how to implement good biosecurity against infectious diseases.
While many webpages do provide advice on poultry farm biosecurity and often highlight the importance of hygiene measures and administrative actions, a lack of operational information has been highlighted in a new scoping review.
Carried out by scientists at the Royal Veterinary College and University of Cambridge on behalf of the UK government, the team reviewed online resources to assess the availability and topics shaping biosecurity advice for producers.
A rapid scoping review examined biosecurity guidelines available to UK poultry farmers on 10 websites, including statutory, trade, assurance and veterinary websites. Webpages were analysed against key criteria, including topics and levels of detail.
Results and the findings released
A total of 174 webpages were analysed, and the following findings were released in a paper published by the Veterinary Record.
- Government websites, including the devolved sites in Wales and Scotland, but not Northern Ireland, which was not reviewed, housed many pages relevant to poultry biosecurity.
- Farm assurance and trade union sites contained less information.
- There was broad consensus across websites on the topics covered.
- Hygiene and administrative guidance included on the largest number of webpages including information on vehicle hygiene, clothing changes and foot dips.
- Most pages contained only limited or some relevant details, often repeating key messages rather than offering comprehensive implementation guidance.
- Pages with extensive detail were linked to regularly and appeared early in search results.
Outdated results
However, the study also found that some websites included webpages that had not been updated in over a decade, while others simply uploaded new material on top of older information.
No website was found to contain detailed and up-to-date instructions regarding how to implement on-farm biosecurity across more than a sub-set of key topics. Where one site might excel in providing detail (eg on government sites regarding licensing), they would fall short on providing detail on other topics they promoted as vital, such as vermin control.
“Therefore, for someone seeking comprehensive detail across biosecurity topics, this currently requires multiple websites.”
The study is entitled ‘Scoping review to assess online guidance about poultry farm biosecurity for farmers in the UK’.
