Biosecurity practices are advancing slowly on dairy farms and are associated with herd size in Brazil

Fernanda Morcatti Coura, professor at Instituto Federal de Minas Gerais (IFMG), Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Maria Luiza De Grandi, journalist from Ciência Rural journal, Santa Maria RS, Brazil. 

A study conducted by the Instituto Federal de Minas Gerais (IFMG), in partnership with the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) and Zambrano Consultoria, analyzed how biosecurity practices have been adopted by Brazilian dairy farms and identified important differences among small, medium, and large properties, revealing a scenario that requires greater technical support and awareness to ensure healthy herds and high-quality milk. The article Biosecurity practices and sanitary challenges on dairy farms in Brazil was published in journal Ciência Rural (vol. 55, no. 9, 2025).

Researcher Fernanda Morcatti Coura explains that the motivation arose from the need to understand how producers actually implement preventive measures in their daily farm routines, since “biosecurity is one of the pillars for maintaining healthy animals and protecting public health, but we still lack solid information on how these practices occur in the country’s dairy sector,” according to her. The study analyzed responses from 91 producers across different Brazilian regions, obtained through an online questionnaire consisting of 54 questions, adapted from internationally validated tools and focused on sanitary management, animal introduction, milking, manure management, and producers’ perceptions of disease prevention.

The results showed that although nearly all participants recognize the importance of preventing diseases in the herd, many essential practices are still not part of the routine on a large number of farms. Less than half of the producers have participated in any biosecurity training, and only a minority conduct sanitary tests when purchasing new animals, which increases the risk of introducing diseases into the herd. Fernanda emphasizes that “there is knowledge, but technical support is lacking to turn this understanding into routine practice within the farm gate.” The study also identified that larger properties and intensive systems adopt more preventive measures, such as diagnostic testing, quarantine, and herd management technologies, while small and extensive farms face greater difficulties in implementing these actions.

Image: Fernanda Coura

In the article, the authors show that only 10% of properties treat manure, although 74% carry out its collection and storage, and that access control to animal areas is inadequate on a large number of farms, allowing the entry of people and vehicles without hygiene or disinfection procedures. The researcher explains that these data highlight structural and economic challenges affecting the sector, stating that “small producers face financial barriers and a lack of specialized assistance, and this directly reflects on the adoption of more advanced practices.” Even so, she stresses that basic measures, such as vaccination protocols, milking hygiene, and calf care, are already applied on many properties, especially those with higher production levels.

Despite presenting comprehensive results, Fernanda notes that the study is a starting point and does not represent the entire Brazilian dairy sector, as it was based on a voluntary questionnaire with 91 responses. According to her, “the work needs to be expanded, especially to include more regions and different production profiles, but we have already been able to identify important bottlenecks and possible paths to improve biosecurity in the field.” For the researcher, the findings reinforce the need for specific public policies and continuous training for producers, especially small-scale ones, who are most in need of support. She states that “the results can guide training programs, encourage the use of accessible technologies, and help direct public and private resources to strengthen herd health and the sustainability of milk production.”

The innovation of the study lies in relating biosecurity practices to the size and type of production system of the farms, an unprecedented approach in Brazilian dairy farming. While other studies in the country tend to focus on isolated aspects of sanitary management, this work sought to understand how different production profiles adopt—or fail to adopt—essential preventive measures, opening space for the development of tools better suited to the national reality. Fernanda reinforces that “dairy farming still lacks a consensus on which questions should be asked to assess biosecurity, so we adapted an international questionnaire and demonstrated the urgency of building tools tailored to Brazil.” For her, this is a fundamental step toward creating more accurate diagnoses and guiding animal health programs that truly meet the needs of Brazilian dairy farms.

To read the article, access

SILVA, C.A.C., et al. Biosecurity practices and sanitary challenges in dairy farms in Brazil. Ciência Rural [online]. 2025, vol. 55, no. 9, e20240489 [viewed 7 April 2026]. https://doi.org/10.1590/0103-8478cr20240489. Available from: https://www.scielo.br/j/cr/a/g6sN83JDmkdvf53whFvNsGx/

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