Rethinking Pig Barn Design

Posted in: Economics, Energy, Pork Insight Articles, Production by admin on March 30, 2011 | No Comments

Increasing energy costs and stricter environmental regulations mean a more efficient, sustainable barn design is needed. More efficient heating, lighting, and ventilation equipment can help to reduce energy use, but designs that consider environmental and animal performance impacts are more intensive. An integrated system of environmental control, manure management, and feed delivery and storage will allow for greater efficiency and animal performance than individual parts. Energy use is generally evaluated on a per pig basis, but this does not always accurately indicate performance and efficiency. A more accurate measure of energy use would be to measure on per weight of meat produced. Rather than focusing on single inputs and outputs, systems should be designed and evaluated based on animal performance. Temperature can affect weight gain and feed efficiency in pigs, so having the optimal temperature is important to have good performance. Hot temperatures can cause heat stress, reduced gain, and more fat deposition. Manure handling affects air quality within the barn and emissions outside of the barn. Scraper systems have an advantage for manure handling as they reduce emissions, reduce the risk of hazardous gases within the barn, and would be suitable for use with an on-site anaerobic digester. During hot conditions, cooling is necessary to maintain performance, and floor cooling will keep pigs dunging in the right areas for partially slatted floors. An evaporative system reduces the need for ventilation by 1/3, and a geothermal system by 2/3. Creating more efficient building concepts requires larger capital input, so any designs would have to be offset by increased pig performance.

Managing Volatility

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Volatility in feed and hog prices has led to an increase in producer costs. Going forward, it needs to be determined if consumers will pay more for the same products, and how to manage volatility. Understanding costs is a big part of managing volatility, and this can be helped by creating crush margins. Managing feed costs can be done by integrating grain production into the business, or through using strategy tools like the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Reducing cost of production whenever possible, and managing risks in interest rates and human resources is also important. Other external factors, including currency and the lender, can also impact volatility management.

The Nutrition and Economics of Feeding Entire Males Through the Grow-Finish Period

Posted in: Economics, Nutrition, Pork Insight Articles, Production by admin on | No Comments

Finishing entire males allows for better feed conversion, greater lean yield, and higher animal welfare. Historically, the problem with raising entire males was the possibility of developing boar taint when boars reach sexual maturity. However, immunocastration is a viable option for raising boars and preventing boar taint. Entire males will likely have higher amino acid requirements due to the increase in protein deposition,  but feed efficiency is increased which will likely result in lower feed costs overall. Some progress has been made in genetically or nutritionally reducing boar taint, but the most effective method is immunizing against gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH). Immunocastrated males have a lower feed efficiency than entire males after the second dose is given (4-6 weeks prior to slaughter), but it is still above that of barrows. Restricting feed intake or dietary energy may be able to reduce fat deposition after the second dose. Immunized males may be practical option to utilize feed efficiency and protein deposition close to entire males while avoiding boar taint, resulting in increased financial returns.

Looking Beyond Production Benchmarking

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Benchmarking is a continuous process that allows for comparison and improvement when used properly. Benchmarking can be overwhelming due to the amount of data, but can be useful when both production and financial information is considered. For production, mortality rate for pre-weaning and finishing, the pigs produced for size of farm, and hog sales are some useful figures. For example, the top 50% had similar born alive/litter, weaned/litter, and weaned/sow/year. Financial information shows that the top 50% receive more per pig, and also pay less for each pig produced. The increase in net profit appears to be mostly due to a decreased feed cost per pig. Comparisons between provinces can show how competitive a region is. When attempting to benchmark, it is important to consider what to measure, who to benchmark against, and the time period.

Looking Beyond Production Benchmarking

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Benchmarking can help producers compare their results to others in the industry and make improvements, but it requires continuous comparisons and accurate interpretation. The statistics for farrowers show the lowest cost producers have low mortality and non-productive days. For finishers, the lowest cost producers have low mortality and culls, and formulate and review diets to be economical. Benchmarking may help when dealing with loaners, as improvements and meaningful comparisons can be shown.

Setting up an Effective On-Farm Trial

Posted in: Economics by admin on December 3, 2010 | No Comments

The pork industry is blessed with a number of innovators.  All pig farms participate to a greater or lesser extent in experimenting to improve productivity, reduce costs, or make management easier. Sometimes the results of such experimentation are as expected. Often however, the time, effort and money required to innovate and experiment results in more questions than answers and does not lead to an innovation being adopted on the farm as part of a new long-term management strategy. This paper will help to explain why results are not always what we expect and how to improve your odds of success in future on-farm trials.

To view the entire paper click here!

To view the Effective Farm Trial Checklist click here!

Economic Profitability of Sustained Application of Swine Lagoon Effluent and Beef Feedlot Manure Relative to Anhydrous Ammonia in the Oklahoma Panhandle

Posted in: Economics by admin on April 2, 2010 | No Comments

With the rapid growth of swine (Sus scrofa domestica) production in the Oklahoma Panhandle, animal waste management has become a growing concern. Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the long-term eff ects of equivalent nitrogen rates of swine lagoon effl uent (SE), beef manure (BM), and commercial fertilizer on the yield and economic returns of irrigated corn (Zeamays L.) grown on calcareous Gruver silt loam soil (fi ne, mixed, superactive, mesic Aridic Paleustoll) near Goodwell, Oklahoma.

A randomized, complete-block, split-plot design with three replications was used to test the main eff ects of N source (NS) and equivalent N application rates (NR) of 56, 168, and 504 kg N ha–1. Both BM and SE generated signifi cantly (P < 0.05) higher corn yields than anhydrous ammonia (AA) across the main eff ect of NS. Greater separation of mean corn yields was found among NS as the equivalent NR rate was increased from 56 to 504 kg N ha–1 with the following rankings (P < 0.05): AA = BM = SE at 56 kg N ha–1, BM = AA ≥ SE at 168 kg N ha–1, and SE > BM > AA at 504 kg N ha–1. Both SE and BM generated signifi cantly (P < 0.05) higher economic returns than AA. Th e highest ranked alternatives of economic returns were generated by SE×504 and BM×168. Results indicate that SE and BM can be economically viable substitutes for commercial fertilizer, bringing higher yields and economic benefi ts to producers in the Oklahoma Panhandle.

PDF provided from Agron. J. 102:2 pp:  420-430 (2010), with permission, copyright American Society of Agronomy.

Performance Versus Cost

Posted in: Economics, Pork Insight Articles by admin on April 1, 2010 | No Comments

Even with good performance and consistently meeting weaning goals producers can end up in financial trouble. Either costs are too high or income too low, but either way performance measurements are not always accurate at determining the success of a producer. Financial statements allow the current and past status to be evaluated, provide objective targets, and allow for future planning. Ways to track financial performance include charts of accounts, balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements. Analysis of finances can be done through ratios in five areas: profitability, turnover, financial leverage, liquidity, and market value. Return of Equity (ROE), or the Dupont system, is often used because it addresses invested capital. Return on Assets (ROA) can intuitively be used when making management decisions, as it includes throughput and profit margin, and it contributes to total ROE. Optimum performance involves balancing high productivity and low costs, this is particularly hard to determine when prices are volatile and benchmarking difficult. Partial budgets are useful for making smaller, short-term decisions. Sensitivity analysis is useful to see how robust the budget is when one variable, like a price, is changed. Financial records can be powerful tools for analyzing performance, and with production records can give a good overview of the status of the facility.

The Global Pork Situation – Where Does Canada Fit?

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The pork industry has become a global industry due to importing and exporting of pork, pigs, and feed. Canada has only 1.6% of the global pig industry, and experienced the largest decline in numbers between 2005 and 2009. Although cost of production rose 22.5% in 2006-2007, Canada still has one of the lowest costs of production. Canada is also one on the top (3rd in 2009) exporters, and the global pork consumption is expected to increase, especially in developing nations. Canadian processors and retailers experience high competition globally and in North America. The US companies strongly dominate the market, and this puts pressure on the Canadian pork industry to supply Canadian companies pork at lower cost and higher quality. Global issues also impact the Canadian industry, as seen through issues like corn prices and H1N1. Since Canada relies on exporting, any global issues like exchange rates, labeling restrictions, and global prices, will have an effect on the pork industry.

Cost Benefit of Vaccines and Medication -Nickels and Dimes?

Posted in: Economics, Pork Insight Articles by admin on April 1, 2009 | No Comments

Veterinarian costs are a lower percent of total pork production expense, but can still provide some savings as long as herd health is not compromised. Lower-cost vaccines and antiparasitic products can be used in some barns for certain diseases or parasites, especially in low-risk barns. Injectable antibiotics can be used in PCV-2 controlled herds. Cost benefit analysis shows the benefit of using PCV-2 vaccines, in-feed medications as growth promotants, and metaphylaxis in certain groups. However, the herd veterinarian should still be consulted to decide which changes are appropriate for the herd.