Collaborative strategic thinking rose as a key theme during the 36th Annual Swine Conference hosted by Carthage Veterinary Service.
“People get us through the crisis. People are the ones who win the day,” said Matt Eversmann, keynote speaker and retired U.S. Army First Sergeant and military hero famous for his leadership during the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia, which inspired the book and movie Black Hawk Down.
His inspirational message and captivating story challenged attendees. The swine industry is facing many battles now, he pointed out. Eversmann encouraged three things when going into battle.
“Act independently,” Eversmann said. “Be prepared to go it alone. Act organically. Do the things you know how to do. In a crisis, your standards are exposed, so train to a high standard. Finally, act now. We need people who are going to make the decision.”
In addition to his keynote, producers and industry leaders delivered a powerful mix of actionable on-farm strategies and forward-thinking research throughout the day designed to help producers navigate an evolving industry. Here are some of the key takeaways shared at the Oakley-Lindsay Center in Quincy, Ill., on Sept. 1:
“In recent weeks, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) incidence has increased and is higher than in previous years. The current rise is primarily driven by growing herds while breeding herds remain relatively low. The virus is changing, so we need to start thinking about changing how we deal with it.” – Gustavo Silva, DVM, Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine
“Water intake drives feed intake and should be focused on early and often.” – Nat Stas, PIC technical services director
“Taking time up front saves time in the end. When you see an at-risk sow, get her up and take her for a walk. Walk in a calm manner at the sow’s pace. Take the long way. We want to see the sows eat, drink, urinate and defecate. It takes 5 minutes.” – Mandy Dutton, senior production manager for Professional Swine Management
“We must accept our brutal reality. We’ve created an industry that: is extremely susceptible to PRRS infection, can turn the best performing farm into the worst performing farm overnight, facilitates PRRS virus recombination, and unintentionally selects for PRRS virus strains which evade our biosecurity processes. We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” – Clayton Johnson, DVM, Carthage Veterinary Service
“A filtered farm is never finished- it’s a daily mindset. Filtration changes the odds. But it does not eliminate risk and it is not a magic bullet.” – Phil Hord, Hord Family Farms
“When economically feasible, increasing soybean meal inclusion without excessively increasing crude protein allows formulation savings while maintaining growth performance.” – Katelyn Gaffield, Kansas State University
“Genetics, health and feed manufacturing have never stood still for long. What we do today may be commonplace in five years – what will the next chapter of swine nutrition look like? As long as we have producers asking questions and not being settled, I believe we will continue to help everyone move forward.” – Casey Neill, Carthage Innovative Swine Solutions
“Establish priorities for pig production that will be your focus as you conduct your daily chores. Establish a routine, follow set timeline and minimize stressors that disrupt essential pig production priorities.” – Chance Cochran, Carthage Innovative Swine Solutions
