Many dietary strategies focus on supporting the mucosal microbiota through the use of prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics to improve pig performance.
Improved feeding, manure handling and precision applications can substantially reduce ammonia and greenhouse gas emissions, lower nutrient losses and enhance manure’s value as a fertilizer shrinking the pork industry nitrogen footprint.
The rerouting system showed that even without effective truck cleaning and disinfection, it reduced up to 42% of the contacts between infected and uninfected farms via vehicle movements.
Efforts are often focused on reducing feed costs via custom formulations, additives and optimized transportation, but management of the feed after it arrives in the finishing barn can have a big impact on feed efficiency and costs.
Precision livestock farming technologies are rapidly being developed and increasingly available in the commercial market. With so many technologies to choose from, it can be challenging to decide which ones to invest in.
Keeping sows in ideal body condition can be a balancing act. New research from North Carolina State University outlines sow condition targets to minimize body lesions and maximize productivity.
Seasonality in reproduction can impair our ability to maintain constant reproductive output. NCSU evaluated the impact of parity and prefarrow sow body condition in a hot environment on subsequent farrowing rates.
There are many complex interactions between the animals, air, water, soil and energy in the swine industry. Because of this, our approach to sustainability is multidimensional, says NC State’s Suzanne Leonard.
In most facilities and climates, the heat produced by young pigs may not be enough to achieved the desired environmental temperature and an additional heat source is required. NCSU reports on some of the options.
Can a gruel pre-weaning supplementation better prepare piglets to handle increased stress encountered after weaning? NCSU researchers share the results of their latest study.
