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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:
Welfare, Meat Quality, Growth Performance and Economics of Pigs Housed in Hoop Barns
Posted in: Production by admin on January 1, 2006 | No Comments
Hoop barns were designed to address welfare issues of pigs, but the results are fatter carcasses from higher feed intake and a poorer feed conversion. Pigs in the hoop barns consumed about 7% more feed than pigs in the confinement barn. Efficiency of gain was about 6% worse for pigs in the hoop barn compared to the confinement barn. Pigs reared in confinement produced loins with more marbling, lower drip loss, and lower shear force (tenderness) values than similarly fed pigs housed in hoop barns. Total labor required to care for pigs in the confinement barn was about 14 minutes/pig placed, while in the hoop barns 8.5 minutes were required to care for each pig placed. The value per pig marketed was at least $5.00/head lower in the hoop system than confinement, due mostly to greater back fat and lighter weight for pigs marketed from the hoops. The combination of bedding costs and lower sales prices for pigs in the hoop systems resulted in negative net returns for the hoops compared to the confinement system. Pigs housed in the hoop barns showed more exploratory behavior and were easier to handle, and the bedding and large group size provided more opportunities for locomotion and environmental stimulation. They were less fearful of humans and objects, which make them easier to handle. Because they are easier to handle, stress at load out becomes less, meaning no meat quality loss from the stress.
Carcass Trims – A Look at Arthritis and Adhesions Trims from Severely Affected Herds
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Pork carcasses require trimming when defects are present. Federal and provincial regulations require trimming of defects to reduce food safety hazards and improve product quality. The most frequent causes of trims in Alberta are arthritis, chest adhesions and abscesses. Other less common causes include injuries, belly ruptures, and erysipelas. The producer can reduce certain trim rates because they are the result of disease or management problems on the farm. Similar trims may have more than one cause; therefore determining the cause in each barn is essential to designing a solution for that barn. It is important to monitor trim rates routinely and set action limits, invest in a veterinary diagnosis and diagnostic testing to find the cause of trims, ask the processor or herd veterinarian to examine and photograph affected hogs at slaughter to aid in diagnosis, design a prevention program with a swine veterinarian, and prevent septicaemia and pneumonia rather than treat it.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS IN CONTRACT RELATIONSHIPS IN THE SWINE INDUSTRY
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Contracts at the Production and Marketing Phase are Evolving Coordination of the Chain
Continues
Forces Encouraging Coordination
• Branding of Various Kinds to Capture
Consumer Surplus and Overcome
Destructive Cost Competition as Only
Viable Strategy
• Traceability as a both a Legal and
Branding Requirement
• Critical Mass for Up-Chain
Negotiation
• Food Safety/Bio-Terrorism Issues
• Emerging Animal Welfare Issues
• Co-Permitting Threats
30 pigs/sow/year – Are we there yet?
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Big Sky Farms started a “30 Pigs Group” in late 2001 to improve replacement gilt performance, and to target 30 pigs weaned per mated female per year. The group has conducted on-farm trials, and held training workshops to improve farrowing performance. Big Sky Farms also implemented an enhanced genetic improvement system in their 650 sow nucleus herd using individual estimated breeding values (EBV) based on a best linear unbiased prediction (BLUP) system. Currently Big Sky’s BLUP program is based on the number of pigs born and born alive, the percentage of pigs weaned, and age at first mating, with strong emphasis on the number of pigs born. Big Sky Farms also implemented a prolific program in their multiplication herd in the fall of 2003. Big Sky’s prolific program, preferentially selects gilts from litters of 13+ total born. To date, an increase in 0.15 total born and 1.5% units in farrowing rate (91 to 92.5%) has been achieved. Hi-prolific semen, used in 50% of sows at the multiplication level, has increased total born from 10.9 to 11.8, and farrowing rate from 81% to 88%. Emphasis has also been placed on selection of replacement gilts with a minimum weight of 115 kg upon entry into commercial units, and a target entry to service interval of about 32 days. Another system (The Danish system) weans 30+ pigs per sow per year and believes that several key components contribute to this achievement. These include the use of hyperprolific dam lines; breeding gilts at an older age (270+ days) and a heavier weight (160+ kg); paying close attention to the sow at farrowing to minimize stillbirths, and assist where necessary; split-suckle to ensure all piglets receive sufficient colostrums; extend gilt lactation length to 30 to 35 days by weaning their litter at ~20 days and fostering on a litter of 5 to 7 day old pigs; Feed sows a high-density diet (6% added fat and 0.85% digestible lysine) three times daily to optimize feed intake and finally, good management and production teams that are committed to the system’s goals. Although a few systems are achieving 30 weaned pigs per sow per year, on average the industry is still a long way from this goal.
Emulsifier content and side effects of oil-based adjuvant vaccine in swine
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Pork industry honours innovators at Banff Pork Seminar
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Three players in the western Canadian pork industry were honoured for innovation in the field of pork production at the 2006 Banff Pork Seminar Jan. 17-20.
The winners of this year’s F.X. Aherne Prize for Innovative Pork Production include Dr.
Pradip Maiti of Nutratech Inc. in Winnipeg, Man.; Tony Charanduk of Hypor Inc. in
Ituna, Sask.; and Darcy Pauls and Dr. Claude Mason of The Puratone Corporation,
Niverville, Man.
Can Valuable Bioactive Compounds be Obtained from Composted Swine Manure?
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Composted swine manure was examined for the presence of antibacterial and antifungal activities. While commercial composts show some antibacterial activity composted swine manure demonstrated inhibitory activity against Gram-positive bacteria and fungi. Weaker inhibitory activity against Gram-negative bacteria was also detected in composted swine manure. It is likely that these antimicrobial activities are due to compounds produced by bacteria or fungi present in the composted swine manure. An antifungal compound of possible commercial and agricultural significance is present in composted swine manure. Antibacterial agents of the same significance are also present.
PHYTOREMEDIATION OF FLUORINATED AGROCHEMICALS BY DUCKWEED
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