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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:
Age, sex, and weight at weaning influence organ weight and gastrointestinal development of weanling pigs
Posted in: Production by admin on January 1, 2003 | No Comments
Where Do I Start on a CNMP
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Where a producer starts on the road to developing a Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan (CNMP) depends on the producer’s current situation and the amount of time and effort they are willing to invest. The reasons for developing a CNMP could be that it is a requirement, depending on the size of the operation or that an operation wants to receive funds from NRCS Environmental Quality Incentive Program (NCMP are required for this). Another reason may be that the farmer is proactive. There are six components of a CNMP that are not equal by time or effort but all must be completed. They are nutrient management (a budget for all potential sources of nutrients), manure and wastewater handling and storage (description of methods), feed management (the volume and concentration of nutrients), land treatment practices (how manure is applied), record keeping (proof of following the plan) and finally other utilization activities (ex: manure composting or power generation).When a producer signs their CNMP, they are stating that it is accurately reflecting their operations and following the plan. The producer’s involvement in all aspects of the CNMP is vital as it means they understand what the goal is and why it is necessary.
High Levels of H2S in Swine Barns is a Concern
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In a study done by the Prairie Swine Center, researchers evaluated worker exposure to H2S, a potentially deadly gas, while completing tasks such as pulling plugs or power washing rooms. Measurements were taken over two seasons in all parts of the barns, and in many instances, concentrations were many times higher than the recommended maximums. The concentration of H2S that a worker can be exposed to for 8 hours is 10 ppm and short-term exposure is 15 ppm. The findings showed that while plugs were pulled, the H2S concentrations, a meter from the floor and within a meter of the plug area, were high in many cases, sometimes exceeding the monitors which can go up to 1,000 ppm. The use of these monitors in buildings is recommended for worker safety.
Scientists at the Prairie Swine Center plan to develop a system that will allow workers to reduce their exposure to H2S. They will look at 3 different options, the first being a plug design that allows workers to pull the plug away from the plug area. The second will look at a water-based spraying system to see if H2S emissions can be controlled while the manure is pulled. The third option is to see if it is a feasible to retrofit a scraper system in an existing manure pit to be able to take the manure out of the barn on a daily basis but yet in a liquid form to see if H2S emissions can be controlled that way.
Ammonia Volatilization Trends Following Liquid Hog Manure Application to Forage Land
Posted in: Environment by admin on | No Comments
Viral zoonoses – a threat under control?
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Canada's Greenhouse Gas Inventory 1990-2001
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Canada’s agriculture sector emits and removes greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. The main emission sources include: methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from animal production, i.e. enteric fermentation and manure management, and N2O is released from agricultural soils. Removals of CO2 are mainly from Canada’s agricultural soils. This net removal of CO2, observed as an increase in soil carbon storage, is due to greater adoption of conservation practices such as no-till farming and the reduction of summer-fallow on the Canadian prairies.
As there is only a small amount of rice production in Canada, therefore, CH4 emissions from rice production are considered to be negligible and are not inventoried. Similarly, field burning of agricultural residues is no longer considered a common practice in Canadian agriculture and therefore is not inventoried. Prescribed burning of savannas is not a relevant practice in Canada. Greenhouse gas emissions from on-farm fuel combustion are included in Chapter 3: Energy.
For each emission source category, a brief introduction, methodological issues, uncertainties and time-series consistency, quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) and verification, recalculations and planned improvements are provided. The detailed inventory methodologies and activity data are described in Annex 3
Are low crude protein diets practical?
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments
Nutrition has become increasingly complex. Normally, feeding programs are adopted to maximize the farm’s return over feed costs. However, certain circumstances lead to other issues such as minimizing nutrient excretion into the slurry, which is also important. Past research done at the Prairie Swine Centre and elsewhere has shown that feeding low crude protein (CP) diets can decrease the nitrogen output in manure. The use of synthetic amino acids in a low CP diet is becoming more economical, but producers still fear that growth and carcass quality may be adversely affected with the application of such a diet. Results from this study of three diets prove that low CP diets are practical for commercial productions. Growth rates were unchanged in pigs fed the low protein diet compared to those fed the control diet. Carcass quality was unchanged or improved slightly. Overall performance, and uniformity of performance was excellent. The economics of low protein and high synthetic amino acid diets is currently very favourable, saving $2 per barrow and up to $4 per gilt in this trial (based on November, 2003 prices).