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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:
Balancing Biological Potential with Production Constraints: Is it a Priority?
Posted in: Production by admin on January 1, 2006 | No Comments
The last thirty years have seen some significant changes take place with respect to specific traits or characteristics within the porcine species. These traits, as described by geneticists, would be “days to 100 kg”, litter size, and “backfat at 100 kg”. If production systems are unwilling or unable to adjust to new biological potential who should define the limits that should be imposed on genetic selection? In the case of backfat and growth rate, the improvement appears to be very consistent over the past twenty-five years. Litter size has changed more aggressively in the past 10 years. Many factors have lead to this increase in litter size, and it appears that the Yorkshire has seen the most dramatic increase. Many factors have also lead to a decrease in days to 100 kg and decrease in backfat at 100 kg. Trends seem to be relatively similar between Yorkshire, Landrace, and Duroc.
Effect of storage in short- and long-term commercial semen extenders on the motility, plasma membrane and chromatin integrity of boar spermatozoa
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For artificial insemination (AI) in pigs, preservation of liquid boar semen at
16–20 °C is still common practice as sperm cryopreservation remains suboptimal
in this species. To meet the different needs of the swine industry, several
extenders have been developed to preserve semen in liquid form for short- and
long-term storage. In the present study, three different commercial extenders
devised for short-term (BTS+) or long-term preservation (MR-A and X-Cell),
were used to test whether storage of semen from four mature, fertile boars at
17 C for 96 h would affect sperm characteristics relevant for fertility, such as
motility, membrane integrity and chromatin stability. Computer-assisted sperm
analysis, and stainings with the acylated membrane dye SYBR-14/propidium
iodide, and acridine orange in connection with flow cytometry were used to
evaluate these variables. Percentages of total motile spermatozoa decreased
slightly, but significantly, after 72–96 h. While membrane integrity values varied
during the period of study, no significant changes in either membrane
integrity or chromatin stability were, however, registered. This suggests a customary
96-day storage at 17 °C in these extenders was too short an interval to
cause losses of integrity in nuclear DNA in the boar population studied.
Avian influenza and pigs – What Manitoba farmers should know
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The emergence and re-emergence of influenza viruses with pandemic potential for both human and veterinary public health is of great concern globally. Prior to 1997 the scientific community was of the opinion that they understood the influenza virus pretty well; then, influenza jumped directly from poultry to infect and kill people in Hong Kong. Recently the H3N8 equine influenza virus has caused respiratory disease and death in dogs. Avian influenza viruses of Asian-H9 subtype have spread worldwide since the early 1990s, readily infecting a broad spectrum of domestic and wild bird species. Infection levels in poultry populations in the Middle East and Asia are high, providing a reservoir of virus that can lead to transmission to pigs where there is close contact between the species. It is possible these viruses are maintained independently of bird populations and are able to produce clinical disease in pigs. Recent studies in China and Korea have detected an apparently increased prevalence of virus in pig populations. This suggests the virus may have acquired the ability to transmit efficiently from pig to pig. This virus may be adapting to pigs and may become a significant future swine pathogen. In 2003, a catastrophic outbreak of poultry influenza in the Netherlands with H7N7 (avian) virus resulted in the death or slaughter of 30 million poultry. Investigations of 13 HPAI-infected farms keeping both pigs and poultry revealed that pigs on five farms had been infected with the virus. This outbreak demonstrated the ease with which these viruses can cross to pigs and raises issues for control of avian influenza in the future where different species, including pigs, are kept on the same farm premises (epidemiological unit). Repeated introductions of swine influenza viruses to turkeys, which may be coinfected with avian influenza viruses, provide opportunities for the emergence of new virus types (novel reassortants) with genes adapted for replication in pigs or even humans. There is a continuing need to monitor pigs and domestic birds to better understand interspecies transmission and the emergence of novel influenza viruses. Ten years ago public health and veterinary officials were convinced they understood the scientific basis of influenza transmission and adaptation. Currently the scientific community is far less confident they can predict the behaviour of influenza viruses. Making risk based and policy decisions in times of scientific uncertainty is difficult.
L'agriculture: des bonnes réponses terre-a-terre – Les gens de l'agriculture canadienne répondent a vos questions
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Dans son ensemble, l’agriculture est importante pour l’économie canadienne: 34,9 milliards de dollars de ventes annuelles pour les secteurs de l’évelage et des cultures.
La plupart des producteurs agricoles sont néanmoins des exploitant indépendants, qui dirigent de petites entreprises sur une base individuelle. Il n’est pas facile de fair le portrait précis d’une exploitation type, car chaque ferme est unique. Les agriculteurs gerent des entreprises qui sont soumises aux meme pressions économiques et sociétales que les autres et n’ont d’autres choix que d’y faire face.
La seule véritable constante en agriculture est le changement. Les producteurs doivent donc se montrer alertes, créatifs et faire preuve de discernement dans le choix des produits qu’ils mettent en marché, ainsi que dans leurs méthodes de production et de commercialisation.
Avant d’approfondir les questions touchant plus directement la production alimentaire, examinons de plus pres ce qui caractérise l’environnement d’une ferme canadienne afin d’etre davantage en mesure de comprendre les changements qui se produisent en agriculture.
Land Requirement for Manure from Hogs Fed Phytase-Amended Rations
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The application of manure based on crop N requirements will lead to the accumulation of phosphorus in the soil. High soil phosphorus content increases the risk of soil loss to surface water. To address the problem of phosphorus accumulation in the soil, hog producers use phytase supplement in swine diet. While this has been shown to reduce the phosphorus content of manure, its impact on soil test P level and land requirement for manure application are unknown. Therefore the objectives of this study were: (1) To determine the concentration and forms of phosphorus in swine manure from a phytase and non-phytase barns; (2) to measure soil test P following the addition of manure from phytase and non-pyhtase barns; and (3) to determine whether or not the longevity of a parcel of land utilized for manure spreading will be reduced or enhanced with the use of phytase in hog rations. To achieve these objectives we carried out a field study in 2004 and 2005 on a farmer cooperator’s field on which the dominant soil types were the imperfectly drained Red River clay and the poorly drained Osborne Clay. Six experimental treatments were imposed on a strip of land with a total area of 91 by 122 m. The six treatments were: manure from the large cell of a phytase barn; manure from the small cell of a phytase barn; manure from the large cell of a non-phytase barn and manure from the small cell of a non-phytase barn; and two controls. These plots were seeded to barley in 2004 and canola in 2005. During manure application, samples of manure were taken for total P measurement and a detailed analysis of forms of P in the manure. In the spring and fall of each year, soil samples were taken from 20 random positions of each strip of land and were analyzed for various extractable phosphorus. Our results show that the use of phytase resulted in a significantly smaller manure phosphorus compared to the barns that do not use phytase. On average, the phosphorus content of manure from the phytase barn was one-half of that from the non-phytase barn. Manures from the large cells had smaller phosphorus concentrations and higher N:P ratios compared to that from the small cells. The results from the two years of study confirmed that, not only is the P concentration of manure from barns that do not use phytase greater than those that use phytase, the manure from non-phytase barns are also more water soluble particularly those from the large cells of these barns. All manures had considerable amount of labile phosphorus, however, the highest was found in manure from the large cell of the non-phytase barn (88%) and the value of the labile P from the other manures was about 60%. The soil test P was significantly greater for soil that received manure from the small cells compared to those that received manure from the large cells. Also, plots that received manure from the phytase barn had smaller soil test P compared to plots that received manure from non-phytase barn. The rate of increase in soil test P was similar among various manures. While soil test P increased by about 0.2 lb/acre for every lb/acre of added manure according to Mehlich-3 P, the corresponding value for Olsen was 0.1 lb/acre while the rate of increase in water P was 0.03 lb/acre for every lb/acre of manure P. Based on this, and using the P concentration in the manure we estimated that twice the amount of land will be needed for manure from a non-phytase barn compared to a phytase barn. Stated differently, if the same size of land were used to apply the manure from the phytase barn and the non-phytase barn, the land that received manure from the phytase barn will have twice the longevity of the land that is applied with manure from the non –phytase barn. This study, thus, show the importance of management practices, such as the use of large cell and small cell to separate manure and the use of phytase to reduce the phosphorus level of manure, in reducing soil test P values with an increase in the longevity of land receiving this manure and reduced risk of P loss from the soil to surface water.
ANNUAL ODOR EMISSION RATE FROM DIFFERENT TYPES OF SWINE PRODUCTION BUILDINGS
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ECONOMIC MODELS FOR TMDL ASSESSMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION
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