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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:
Ontario Modifies Nutrient Management Plan
Posted in: Environment by admin on January 1, 2003 | No Comments
After all the information sessions and public consultation meetings were held across Ontario, the following changes regarding the implementation of the regulations under the Nutrient Management Act are:
– Making July 1, 2003 the implementation date of the proposed regulations for all livestock farms and those expanding into and within the large category.
– Making 2005 the implementation date for existing large livestock farms
– Tying the implementation dates of any further regulations, other than the new and expanding livestock farms, to the availability of cost-shared funding
– A protocol would be established whereby the ministry of the environment would have the ultimate authority to ensure compliance with the regulations through investigations and enforcement
– The ministry of Agriculture and Food would be the first point of contact for on-farm nutrient management issues, including monitoring.
– Setting up a provincial advisory committee that would provide recommendations to the government regarding nutrient management issues. It would include farmers, environmental scientists, municipal representative and others.
– Some of the issues that would be referred to this committee for further examination are:
– When the proposed regulations would apply to all types of farms except new livestock farms, large livestock farms and those expanding into the large livestock farm category
– Restrictions regarding the siting and construction of nutrient storage as well as manure handling and application near municipal wells
– Seasonal outdoor feeding area standards
– Manure storage issues for existing operations
– Decommissioning of manure storages
– Nutrient application on tile-drained land
– Nutrient application on shallow soils
– Odour-related setback and standards
– Winter spreading restrictions for nutrients from the pulp and paper sector
Composting Hog Manure – Is it Right for Your Farm?
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
The concern of farm odor is forcing the industry to look at alternative methods of manure handling. Composting, while not completely odor free, is a good alternative. This provides soils with rich nutrients that chemical fertilizers cannot. In Biotech shelters, it is essential to mix the contents collected in order to obtain a thorough distribution of nutrients. Separation of manure using mechanical or chemical means or a combination of the two is necessary in liquid manure systems.
Decomposition is the process of the breaking down of organic material (when conditions are right – preferably warmer) by microbial organisms. Four key factors in decomposition include nutrient balance, moisture content, temperature, and aeration.
Proper composting requires proper equipment. This equipment must be able to prepare the site of composting. The improper sizing of compost turner equipment to perform the function can result in higher cost per ton of finished compost. Good compost sites must have adequate drainage and be a sufficient distance from areas of concern (such as towns, schools, etc.).
Soil Mixing to Decrease Surface Stratification of Phosphorus in Manured Soils
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
THE IMPACT OF SWINE PRODUCTION ON LAND VALUES IN ILLINOIS
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Design of a manure handling system for air quality laboratory in a swine barn
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments
Two manure-handling systems are currently being tested to determine which system best eliminates all manure contamination from the air in a air quality laboratory. The two systems include a washing gutter and an inclined, washed conveyor belt. Both systems can be adjusted to run at various frequencies and are currently being tested to find out how often they need to run to eliminate contamination from the manure.
Maximizing Growth Rate – Weaning to Market
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments
Throughput is important for maximized production. Faster growth rates do not hinder the quality of the pork produced. The relationship between growth rate, feed intake, and feed conversion contributes to the overall growth rate. Pigs gain muscle mass with increased protein in the diet as long as sufficient energy is available. It has been estimated that only about one-third of the protein consumed in the diet will be retained in the body as protein. Minerals, protein, and energy are all needed for growth. Excess protein will be used for energy, and excess energy will be deposited as fat. Genetics have allowed for different options when purchasing breeding stock. Current genetic improvements have resulted in an increase in the lean growth rate of up to 3% per year. As the lean content of the pig increases, feed efficiency improves. In order to support this increased growth, the supply of nutrients must also increase, through either increased feed intake or the use of more nutrient dense diets. Environmentally, pigs need to be in their thermal comfort zone to maximize feed intake without hindering growth rate. Heat emission from basic pig metabolism should be taken into account so that pigs do not get too hot in warm temperatures. The environment should successfully balance the heat loss with the heat production of the pigs. Newly weaned pigs should be in a room with a slightly higher temperature to make up for pigs that are not eating and losing heat. Typically, lower average daily gains and higher feed intake occurs among pigs in a cold environment. As a thumb rule, one can estimate that for every degree C below the thermal comfort zone, growth rate will decline by 10 to 22 g/d. While crowding is known to reduce growth rate and feed intake, increasing the density of the diet to achieve equivalent daily nutrient intake is not successful in returning the performance of crowded pigs to that achieved by non-crowded pigs. A healthy animal is important because the immune system requires energy to operate. Diet composition must be adequate (not too dense yet not too thin). Particle size is important for maximizing feed intake and efficiency, and research is still going on to determine the optimal particle size.
Weaner Problems in Danish Pig Production
Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments
Due to Denmark’s removal of large amounts of zinc and growth promotants from diets, diarrhea has become a big problem from E. coli. This can cause death in 5 to 8 days after weaning, often with diarrhea not even being seen. Age, weight at weaning, hygiene, climate conditions, feeding strategy, feed formulation, feeding conditions, water supply and density among the pigs are all important factors to take into consideration when dealing with E. coli diarrhea.
Lawsonia diarrhea causes grayish diarrhea, a reduction in weight gain, and usually begins at 3 weeks post-weaning. Proper feed formulation and very good hygiene practice are both helpful in preventing this disease.
Denmark has also seen PRRS and PMWS/Circovirus.
Transferring results of behavioral research to industry to improve animal welfare on the farm, ranch and the slaughter plant.
Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments
Aversive handling procedures regularly affect animal production in a negative way, whether it is through decreased gains, decreased milk production, increased presence of illness, etc. Good handling equipment aids in good production, but stockman attitude towards animals is equally essential. In the past, animal handling, transport, and stunning methods have been successfully transferred to the industry. However, there must be careful attention to detail when constructing new equipment in order to improve animal welfare. Construction of new equipment should be based on the scientific specifications rather than cost benefits to the contractor or producer, and construction should be supervised by the scientist when possible to ensure it is being carried out properly. Scientists who come up with ideas for new technologies must be able to communicate their ideas in a clear and concise manner to the industry and public, using layman’s terms and avoiding scientific jargon. Communication is best carried out through speaking at conferences and public events, through websites, and through publishing of research in magazines and scientific journals. Consultation with producers on how to implement new procedures and technology should be readily available. In order to maintain excellent stockmanship and animal handling, it is essential to have the appropriate number of staff for the workload at hand. Financial penalties could then be implemented relating to the number of injuries animals have, or the drop in production an operation may have compared to the industry average. Speed should not be rewarded when it comes to the handling and processing of animals. Provision of economic benefits relating to improvements in animal productivity and reduction in injuries would provide more incentive for the industry to adopt welfare friendly methods of production. Implementing standards such as scoring systems to compare animal handling techniques to set welfare standards would benefit producers as well. For example, paying attention to the number of animal vocalizations at slaughter would give the processor an idea of where to improve their methods, since vocalizations are often related to aversive events such as bad handling, equipment problems, bad flooring, etc. Welfare legislations and requirements that are specified by large customers (such as restaurants and supermarkets) provide powerful motivation and economic incentive to the industry to use behavioral methods of production. Such customers keep up frequent audits in which they regularly score their supplier’s operations and set standards. If a supplier fails an audit, they are suspended from the supplier list, or removed from the list altogether. Overall, scientists need to take more initiative to get their research results adopted by the industry.