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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:
In The Media – Animal Welfare Crisis Caught on Video: Interactive Workshop
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Welfare by admin on May 26, 2012 | No Comments
With growing concerns for animal welfare, and the rapid spread of news through social media and other online sources videos and images of poor animal handling can spread quickly. Sometimes these videos or images are taken out of context, or misunderstood – such as the castration process. When videos involving animal welfare are viewed, it can have a negative impact on the entire industry as the event is likely not going to be perceived as an isolated incident. The workshop intends to help set up the proper responses if producers are contacted about such a video. Whenever a video or image with questionable content appears it is important to form a response, think who should be informed of the video, and how to get a response message out. Having a plan in place can help quickly clear up public misconceptions, and avoid industry-wide backlash.
New Code of Practice and Impact on Producers
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The Pig Code started in 2010 to set standards for animal care. So far they have six areas in which standards must be set: pain control, euthanasia, pig space allowance, sow housing, social management and space allowance for sows. The standards will be determined by biological functioning, affective state, and natural living. Once the code is produced it will help keep animal welfare accountable.
Food Company Perspective on Animal Welfare
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The pork industry in Denmark has five levels of animal welfare. Level 1 is the general Danish public, and requires loose housing for dry sows, rooting material for sows and growers, cooling facilities and no fully slated floors for growers. The UK Welfare Production is level 2, and includes the same as level 1 with the addition extension of loose sow housing from after weaning until 7 days prior to farrowing. Level 3 is called Freedom Foods, and sows do not have crates, and must be able to turn around during farrowing confinement. Growers receive bedding, are kept in lower densities, and not castrated. Level 4 is Free Range: farrowing sows are outside with 1000m2 grassland/sow, other sows must have outdoor access, groups and bedding, and weaning is after 5 weeks. Growers have outdoor access, bedding, more room, and no tail docking. Finally, level 5 is Organic Production. Sows have 1200m2, bedding, roughage, and weaning is at 7 weeks. Growers have more room, 50% full floors, covered outdoor access, and roughage. Companies like Tican are looking to increase products from different levels, both to comply with changing legislation and to provide products for public demand.
Dietary Omega-6 to Omega-3 Fatty Acid Ratios Affect Body Fat Mobilization During Lactation
Posted in: Nutrition, Pork Insight Articles, Welfare by admin on May 23, 2012 | No Comments
Increases in production management have led to sows producing larger litters, although there has been even greater increases in piglet mortality. This may be because a sow can’t create enough energy for its entire litter. This experiment sets out to find if altering the fatty acid ratio in sows will have an impact on fat mobilization in the body potentially effecting body condition and longevity of the sow. The experiment consisted of five diets specialized for farrowing and gestation, all with the same amount of fat but different omega-6:omega-3 ratios. The diets consisted of one control diet (tallow) three plant oil based ratios (10:1, 5:1, and 1:1) as well as a fish based oil ratio of 5:1. Piglet growth rate was measured and milk samples were taken. Piglets raised on the 5:1 plant diet had the highest birth weight and weaning weight while the fish oil had the lowest in both. Piglet growth rate and sow body weight were unaffected by diet. Altering the ratio in sow diets did not affect milk composition or output, suggesting that sows will compensate for changes in feed intake through body fat mobilization. Reducing the omega-6:omega-3 FA ratio below 5:1 put sows into a state of increased body fat mobilization, which may have negative impacts on body condition and longevity.
Effects of Transport Duration on the Stress Response and Pork Quality of Pigs
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In Canada, pigs sometimes have to travel for long distances to get to market. An experiment was carried out to see what impacts these trips were having on the stress of the pigs and meat quality. Over eight weeks transport trailors were loaded and traveled either six, twelve, or eighteen hours. Each trailer had 16 focal pigs put in one of four trailer compartments. After traveling to market the pigs were slaughtered and examined. To measure physial stress samples of creatine kinase, cortisol and lactate were measured in 48 pigs per week. Meat quality was quantified based on muscle ph and temperature 24hrs postmortem . Also colour and drip loss was scored. Higher levels of CK were found in the twelve and eighteen hour trips and in compartments near the back of the trailer. Pigs in the front compartment had little to no increases in stress. Summer was the season that caused the most stress to pigs in transport probably do to excess heat. Drip loss was degraded for pigs who took long trips and road in the back of the trailer, pigs in the front didn’t have any significant change in drip loss. Ph was highest for pigs traveling in the back of the trailer, although there was no change for six hour trips. The colour of the meat was darker in the back compartments. The study concludes that improvements in trailer design have potential to improve pig welfare and meat quality.
Loading Facilities for Market Hogs: Saskatchewan’s Top Ten
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Welfare by admin on May 17, 2012 | No Comments
Load-outs can be a stressful and time consuming experience. Poor load-out procedures can result in downer pigs and death losses. By looking at 10 different load out systems, researchers were able to identify key aspects of well built, low stress handling systems that are beneficial to producers. Recommended practice indicates that ramp angles should be less than 20°, that ramps should be fitted with cleats and have a non‐slip surface. It is recommended that loading facilities be well lit. Also behavior of the people doing the load-out has significant effects on the procedure. All factors, lighting, design, and handling techniques, should be looked at when trying to improve load-out procedures.
Keeping Baby Pigs Alive
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Welfare by admin on May 12, 2012 | No Comments
Preweaning mortality can often make up the majority of birth to market deaths, and on most farms is currently above the 10% or below top farm rate. Suggestions to decrease preweaning mortality include individually feeding sows, and making sure the amount of feed given is adequate, and determine true gestation length of sows so as to not induce too early. For the piglets environment heat lamps are important, a black mat can help capture the heat, and drafts should be eliminated. Having enough labor will allow the piglets to be dried off, and ensure each piglet gets colostrum. Things that should be minimized are the number of processing procedures performed, and the amount of sorting. Finally, the sow’s well-being needs to be monitored throughout. Following these suggestions can help reduce preweaning mortality, and increase the number of pigs brought to market.
Influence of Health on Feed Efficiency
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Welfare by admin on May 11, 2012 | No Comments
This presentation by Dr. Steve Dritz of the University of Kansas State was presented as the 5th in a series of 8 webinars on Feed Efficiency hosted by the Prairie Swine Centre. To access the presentation scroll down and click on Download PDF
Measuring Lameness in Sows
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Production, Welfare by admin on March 28, 2012 | No Comments
Lameness is the second most common reason for culling sows and gilts, and increases mortality and decreases welfare. Visual observations are usually used to assess gait, lameness, and leg and hoof health, which is subjective. More objective measures can include using kinetics with force plates, kinematics by assessing movement videos, and high-resolution floor mats. These are expensive options, so data loggers and analyzing lying position may be more feasible. Three techniques were compared: visual gait scores, kinematics, and postural behaviour. Kinematics was an expensive and time-consuming option. Gait scores and postural behaviour could be used on farm, but results can differ depending on the housing system used.
Preventing muddy conditions in feedlot pens
Posted in: Pork Insight Articles, Research Watch, Welfare by admin on March 8, 2012 | No Comments
Wet and muddy feedlot pens can be costly to producers. Mud can effect how cows keep warm in winter, increase the cost of gain, and even increase feeding costs. Letting manure build up will prevent water from draining out of the pen when it does rain, which leads to mud build up. Cleaning pens regularly can help prevent these conditions. A small slant in the pen floor can help moisture drain from the pen.