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Prairie Swine Centre is an affiliate of the University of Saskatchewan
Prairie Swine Centre is grateful for the assistance of the George Morris Centre in developing the economics portion of Pork Insight.
Financial support for the Enterprise Model Project and Pork Insight has been provided by:
NH3, N2O and CH4 emissions during passively aerated composting of straw-rich pig manure
Posted in: Environment by admin on January 1, 2007 | No Comments
Characterization of Salmonella Bacteriophages Isolated from Swine Lagoon Effluent
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Increasing Drinking Water Use Efficiency in a Commercial Alberta Pork Production Facility
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A practical and economical comparison of water drinkers on a commercial hog facility was conducted. Over the course of a one-year trial, from August 2004 to July 2005, the ball-bite drinker sections of the barn used 35 per cent less water than the standard drinker sections, as measured by the farm’s water monitoring system. These water savings had no detrimental effects on the animals or facility management. Instead, the significant decrease in water usage led to many secondary benefits. Electrical savings occurred from not having to pump the extra 35 per cent of water (in this case 133,149 litres). Less water means less manure. Manure can be spread on the land less often – saving money, time and odour issues with the neighbours (because of fewer applications). Solids build-up causes great problems when removing manure from a facility to apply to the land. However, having less water did not complicate the process of removing manure from the barns assuaging concerns of solid build-up. Reducing the manure volume and total water used in a commercial hog rearing facility results in reductions in greenhouse gas emissions mainly due to less petroleum and electrical energy consumed in handling the manure liquid. Decreasing the amount of energy required delivering water to the barn and distributing it throughout the facility will ultimately decrease the total water system energy load. During manure pump-out and field application, a decrease in fossil fuel use to operate machinery will also be realized. This may prove to decrease the costs of applying the liquid, as less total volume of manure will be handled. Efficient water use allows producers to achieve efficiency gains with minimal capital cost. Reducing the quantity of water used in commercial pig facilities will prolong the life of useful ground water resources, thus prolonging the useful life of groundwater wells on the property. Producers using dugouts for water storage will decrease the requirements for sourcing water to fill these dugouts throughout the year. This project suggested that replacing the standard drinkers with ball-bite drinkers resulted in a payback period of approximately 3.5 months and an increase in annual net income of $1,584 on a $463 investment. The analysis was based on an operation with 500 pigs per cycle and one nipple drinker for every 15 pigs. Overall, the strength of this technology lies in the fact that it is simple, environmentally friendly and profitable.
Neutralization of soil acidity by animal manures: mechanism of reaction
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Forms and reactivity of manure phosphorus from phytase fed swine in Manitoba soils
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The objectives of this study were: To determine the solubility and reactivity of manure P from phytase amended diets in Manitoba soils. To develop techniques that can be used to assess the environmental reactivity and mobility of manure P. To obtain a better understanding of the relationship between increased dietary efficiency of
feed P, animal performance and reduced environmental impact of manure. It was demonstrated in this study that it is possible to completely remove inorganic P from animal diet and have no negative impact on the performance of the animal if the diet is supplemented with adequate amounts of phytase. The digestibility and retention of N and P improved with phytase supplementation leading to reduced manure P content. Overall, the addition of phytase to swine diets reduced the total and labile P in the manure and feces and this will reduce P loading when manure from phytase mended diets is added to the soil. This management practice has the potential to reduce the loss of P from soil to
surface water, as such, swine producers in Manitoba should be encouraged to use this technology as part of their manure management strategies. This study also shows that phytase supplementation had no effect on the solubility of manure P in representative Manitoba soils. However, in the absence of inorganic P, solubility of
manure P increased in calcareous soil mainly due to a lack of calcium in the manure. It may
not be environmentally prudent to eliminate all the inorganic P from swine diets due to its
possible impact on increased manure P solubility in certain soils.
A review of gaseous ammonia emissions from slurry pits in pig production systems
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Twenty-six experimental studies of ammonia emissions from pig buildings that utilise
some form of pit/slurry system have been analysed and compared. Using standard values
for pig weight and total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) content in the waste when these quantities
were unspecified, experimental ammonia emissions were compared on a per cent loss
(of excreted TKN) basis. Correction factors were determined for measurements made
during specific parts of the year, with corresponding differences in temperature, or time of
day, and adjustments were made to put emission data on an annual average basis, when
applicable. When corrected in this way, measurements made in the United States and in
Europe were 22% and 21%, respectively. The standard deviation and standard error of the
mean were 9% and 1.8%, respectively. The 95% confidence interval of the mean was
17.6–24.9%. The proposed emission factor data are reasonably consistent and emission
factors higher or lower must be critically compared to the existing experimental base.
Growth of bedding plants in commercial potting substrate amended with vermicompost
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