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Industry Partners
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:
Odour Emissions Following Application of Hog Slurry to Grassland
Posted in: Environment by admin on January 1, 2007 | No Comments
Particle size and metal distributions in anaerobically digested pig slurry
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Nitrogen Management of Brown Midrib Sorghum X Sudangrass in the Northeastern USA
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Impact of earthen waste storage on nitrate concentration of surface water
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Effect of Nitrification on Phosphorus dissolving in a Piggery Effluent treated by a Sequencing Batch Reactor
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Trials using modified sequencing batch reactors were performed to study the influence of the amount of nitrified nitrogen on pH (and thus solubility of the phosphorus) and determine whether the pH was the main cause of the increased phosphorus dissolving. It was determined that the modified sequencing batch reactor process management (hydraulic retention time and anaerobic/aerobic step duration) did allow the control of the amount of nitrogen nitrified in one cycle and hence the amount of the phosphorus dissolved.
Productivity and aggression at grouping of grower-finisher pigs in large groups
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments
A total ofeight 11-wk trials were conducted to evaluate the productivity and aggression at
grouping ofgrower-f inisher pigs [initial body weight (BW)= 31.8 ± 5.4 kg (mean ± SD), n=2304] in two group size
treatments (18 and 108 pigs pen-1). Pigs were housed on fully-slatted floors, provided one wet/dry feeder space for every
nine pigs, and a floor space allowance of 0.76 m2 pig-1 in both group sizes. The level ofaggression at grouping was
recorded for 2 h starting 0, 24 and 48 h following grouping into small and large groups. Pigs were weighed on weeks 0, 2, 5,
7 and 11, and average daily gain (ADG) was obtained. Average daily feed intake (ADFI) was recorded during two periods
(weeks 2 to 5 and 7 to 11). There was no difference in percentage of time spent on aggression between two group sizes up to
48 h following grouping. ADG for the entire 11-wk trial was affected (2 %) by large group size (0.971 and 0.955 kg d-1 for
groups of 18 and 108, respectively; P<0.05). However, the greatest effect on ADG was observed during the first 2 wk
following grouping (0.919 and 0.833 kg d-1 for groups of 18 and 108, respectively; P<0.001). There were no significant
effects due to group size on ADFI, feed efficiency, variability in final BW within a pen, carcass traits or mortality and
morbidity (P>0.05). In summary, the overall productivity and aggression at grouping did not differ substantially between
group sizes of 18 and 108 pigs pen-1.
Application of a Biological Treatment Approach to Control Gaseous Emissions from Swine Operations
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments
Swine barn workers may be exposed to potentially hazardous levels of gases, especially hydrogen sulphide (H2S), generated during in-barn manure handling tasks. This study demonstrated that adaptation of measures developed in another industry with similar environmental concerns (i.e., oil industry) could lead to successful control of gas emissions generated from swine operations. First, the activity of microbial species which are responsible for the generation of undesirable gases and odour precursor compounds in the manure are diminished using a balanced mixture of specific inhibitors, namely nitrite (NO2) and molybdate (Mo). The second mechanism involved stimulation of the catalytic activity of sulphide-oxidizing bacteria that are either indigenous in the raw swine manure or those which are isolated and enriched from the manure in the laboratory and subsequently added to raw swine manure during treatment. These preliminary results indicate the potential for isolation and enrichment of indigenous sulphide-oxidizing bacteria present in the manure. A more detailed study is being conducted to verify the possibility of enriching a sulphide-oxidizing culture from the manure and to assess the activity of the enriched culture in reducing the emission of sulphide from manure slurries. The effect of this treatment on manure nutrient properties will also be examined to determine the possible environmental impact of subsequent land application of the treated manure. This is necessary information to formulate guidelines for pork producers on the proper application of the treatment in actual swine barns.