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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:
National Sow Housing Conversion Newsletter
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Prairie Swine Centre, Press Releases by admin on November 20, 2014
“Barn conversions and new builds for group housing represent a huge cost to the pig industry”, says Dr. Brown. “Our goal is to put together the best possible information, in terms of barn layout, sow management, and cost of construction, to help Canadian producers who are considering this investment.” While countries in the EU have banned stall use except during breeding and early pregnancy (embryo implantation) as of January 2013, the new Canadian Code of Practice encourages the use of group housing systems, but does not totally ban their use. The EU deadline resulted in reports of poor implementation in some countries, with last minute renovations resulting in lost production and poorer welfare in sows. By not having a deadline, Canadian producers can properly consider their options, and chose the right time for them depending on market demands and financing.
The project participants include leading researchers in the science of sow management, and will draw from barn design and management concepts developed in European countries over the past 20 years. “Due to poor market conditions, very little barn construction work has been done in North America over the last 10 years”, says project participant and CEO of the Prairie Swine Centre, Lee Whittington. “By documenting top-notch barn conversions here in Canada, we will develop new expertise and can provide builders and producers with the information they need for successful conversion to group housing.”
In addition to funding from AAFC, the project is supported by provincial pork organizations, Alberta Pork, Sask Pork, the Manitoba Pork Board and Ontario Pork. By taking a consistent and science-based approach on this issue, the Canadian pork industry demonstrates a pro-active approach to sow management that will have long-term benefits to sow welfare and production, while strengthening domestic and export markets.
The full version of the newsletter can be found here.
NSHC Newsletter vol1(1)_Nov2014