Under historical average prices, feeding Paylean appears to be a profitable innovation
for many producers. Regardless of whether Paylean is adopted or not, the highest returns
accrue to production systems with superior management and growing environments. In
addition, a phase-feeding program makes a substantial contribution to increasing returns.
Paylean requires increasing the dietary lysine percentage to obtain the full potential
benefit. The optimal Paylean concentration and net return from Paylean adoption
increase with the ratio of lean value to fat value. It is optimal to initiate Paylean supplementation
for CF hogs at a lighter weight and feed Paylean for a longer period compared
with SEW hogs.
Based on results of the sensitivity analysis, the optimal Paylean concentration is
sensitive under payment schemes 3 and 4 only, and the length of the optimal Paylean
supplementation period is relatively stable. In addition, the returns from hog production
are not sensitive to the price of Paylean, but are highly sensitive to finishing hog and
feeder pig prices.
Future work should examine additional strategies for managing Paylean. Ideally,
these approaches will be coupled with live animal studies that evaluate the biological
responses to a broader range of Paylean supplementation strategies-including step-up
programs where the Paylean concentrations are increased over time. Additional research
is also needed to assess the effect of Paylean on the within-barn variability in hog
growth. Ultimately, a stochastic model of hog growth should be developed that permits
fme-tuning of herd-level marketing strategies and allows evaluation of Paylean’s effect
on herd variability and its impact on producers’ net returns.