SEARCH
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:
Feasibility of carotid stent deployment in swine using an electromagnetic navigation device for catheter guidance size
Posted in: Production by admin on January 1, 2005 | No Comments
Definitions of Ambient Temperature Requirements for Pigs: A Review
Posted in: Production by admin on | No Comments
Pigs, like all animals, have an ability to live in a variety of thermal environments. Although pigs can adapt to some degree to different thermal environments, there is a cost to production associated with keeping them outside their comfort zone. During cold stress, pigs consume more feed to maintain their core body temperature (the temperature of their vital internal organs). The extra feed consumed is not used for body weight gain. On the other end of the scale, heat stress will reduce feed intake in the pig; production is reduced in the case of the lactating sow because of the reduction in milk production. It is also observed that pigs, heat stressed in the growing phase, are fatter. There are many factors, which influence the thermal environment of the pig. Some of the more obvious are the temperature outside the barn and artificial heating in the barn. Others that are less obvious include stocking density in the pen, type of flooring and feed intake; however, there are many more. Most of these factors can be manipulated in some way by the producer or by the pig itself to reduce the effects of thermal stress. Although there are values in books, which indicate the optimal temperature ranges for pigs of different body weights and production phases, being able to recognize signs of cold or heat stress in your pigs is the best way to adjust the set point temperature and ventilation rate in your barn rooms.
North America Moves Toward One Market
Posted in: Production by admin on | No Comments
Focus too much on the challenging issues that have faced North American agriculture over
the past several years and you might not notice an important long-term development: the agricultural
economies of Canada, Mexico, and the United States are increasingly behaving as if they
form one market. Not only is U.S. agricultural trade with Canada and Mexico on a clear upward
trend, but firms are reorganizing their activities around continental markets for both inputs and
outputs. For example, many North American pastures and feedlots contain animals that have
lived in more than one NAFTA country, and U.S. consumers are purchasing fresh tomatoes and
peppers produced by their neighbors both to the south and to the north.
Trade liberalization under the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CFTA, implemented in
1989) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA, implemented in 1994) is just
one factor behind the growing integration of North American agriculture. To encourage this
trend, decisionmakers in both government and the private sector have pursued greater institutional
and policy coordination. Structural changes within agriculture have also facilitated
integration, as have continued population growth and sustained periods of economic expansion,
which have boosted consumer demand and forced new economic arrangements within
the agricultural and processed food industries.
Genetic parameters for carcass composition and pork quality estimated in a commercial production chain
Posted in: Production by admin on | No Comments
Consumer demands regarding food of animal origin
are of growing importance. As a consequence, traits referring to meat quality are of increasing relevance
for the pork industry. Therefore, the objective of this study is to estimate genetic parameters
for carcass and meat quality traits that are
of practical relevance in combination with information
from current or intended classification systems. It was found that selection for growth rate will have adverse consequences for meat quality based on
the high unfavorable correlations found between average
daily gain and most quality traits considered. Furthermore,
selection for growth rate is negatively correlated
with (sub)primal cut yield and will therefore not
automatically lead to increased cut weights. However,
selection towards increased carcass value by increasing
(sub)primal weights with improved quality will
clearly be feasible based on the correlations that were
found between most meat quality traits and (sub)primal
cuts.
The Effects of Air Injection on the Pipeline Transport of Cattle and Pig Slurries
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
(published in revised form 4 April 2005; published online 13 June 2005) A large-scale pipeline apparatus was used to investigate the effects of air injection on the properties of turbulent liquid flows in horizontal pipelines of different internal diameters (381, 508, 762 and 102 mm). The liquids included clean water, pig slurries with total solid concentrations up to 44% and dairy cattle slurries with total solid concentrations up to 55%. The superficial flow velocities were between 05 and 6 m/s and air injection rates ranged from 1 to 6% (v/v) at the point of injection.
Experimental data were collected in the form of corresponding values of flow rate and pressure gradient. These showed that air injection generally increased pressure gradients compared with the liquids flowing alone. However, inspection of the data indicated a tendency towards pressure gradient reductions if air is injected into cattle slurries containing more than 55% total solids.
It was shown that a simple linear model could represent the changes in pressure gradient brought about by air injection, and that this could provide a satisfactory procedure for the design of slurry pipelines with air injection.
Composting Hog Manure – Why Isn’t Everyone Doing It?
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Composting is a manure management option to consider if there isn’t enough land for manure application. Increased cash flows can be obtained from compost sales only if patience and hard work are present. A composting option should be evaluated in the context of the entire manure management system on the farm. For liquid manure systems, composting may require separation of liquids and solids, which will add an extra step and additional cost. Composting can easily be done with manure from shallow or deep-bedded systems. Composting has also been done using liquid manure directly by blending with straw, corn stover or wood waste. This may be a viable option on farms that have manure with higher solids content. If composting is to be done, there are 2 options. If siting a new operation, it makes sense to consider a shallow litter system, followed by composting the manure. For existing operations, consider the overall manure management and reduce the water content of the manure. Composting of the manure following separation is a good option, but there is the idea of a system that does not require separation.
GAS AND ODOR EMISSIONS FROM SWINE BUILDING MATERIALS
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments