Vitamins may help sows reach third parity

Vitamin supplementation for sows to maintain strong structure and enable maximum reproductive capabilities is more important today than ever before. Due to changes in facilities, fewer ration ingredients and increased production capabilities, vitamins must be supplied to sows through the ration.[1]
"On average, sows don't have enough litters to reach their break-even point financially until the third parity, so we have a big opportunity for increasing profitability in the industry," says Jon Bergstrom, senior technical support manager for DSM Nutritional Products. Citing research that shows the average breeding sow achieves only 2.5 litters in her lifetime with nearly 30 percent of replacements gilts failing to produce a single litter.[2]
Vitamins play an integral role in creating and maintaining bone, muscle, internal organs, blood, and other tissues and fluids of the body; however, the optimum levels of essential vitamins needed for growth and performance are not often found in commercial swine rations. The National Swine Nutrition Guide recommends adding 11 vitamins to sow diets, which are divided into two groups: fat soluble (vitamins A, D, E and K) and water soluble (riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, choline, biotin, vitamin B12, and folic acid).[3]
Bergstrom says that it is a combination of these essential vitamins that helps sows perform to their full potential. In particular, Vitamin D₃ can help build and maintain strong skeletons which prevent lameness and promote reproductive capabilities; Vitamin E is essential for an effective immune system; and Vitamin A can help sows return to estrus and produce healthier piglets.
"In the past, vitamin requirements have been primarily based on studies designed to determine levels which would prevent deficiencies," he says. "In order to have optimum production, you need to provide vitamins at levels far above what's required merely to prevent nutritional deficiencies and diseases."
Several industry groups have updated their recommendations for vitamin feeding levels to help sows reach their full potential.
"We need to feed vitamins that are high-quality and that maintain their stability, so the vitamins haven't deteriorated and provide the intended levels of supplementation when the animal consumes the feed," he says. "Talk with your nutritionist to determine which vitamins best fit your operation. Feeding the vitamins at the optimum levels will enable sows to more closely achieve their genetic potential for lifetime reproductive performance and productivity."
[1] "Vitamins." North Carolina State University. http://www.ncsu.edu/project/swine_extension/nutrition/nutritionguide/vitamins/vitamins.htm. 14 August 2013.
[2] "Breeding performance in swine." DSM Nutritional Products. http://www.dsm.com/markets/anh/en_US/species/species-swine/species-swine-breedingperformance.html. 14 August 2013.
[3] "Trace minerals and vitamins for swine diets." National Swine Nutrition Guide. http://www.usporkcenter.org/FileLibrary/External/USPCE/NSNG/NSNG-Vitamins%20and%20Trace%20Minerals%281%29.pdf. 14 August 2013.

Cyprus pig farm imports more breeding sows

D&F Afxentiou Bros., a 1,500 sow breeding farm in Cyprus received a delivery of live pigs from RA-SE Genetics one week after the banking system started working again.
The sow breeding farm imported GGP stock every 2 to 3 years. Now they are using use Genmatch genetic program to maintain continuous genetic improvement. It will enable the pig farm to operate the CORA and MaxiMus breeding program which will be applied on site so that further imports of live animals are not required after the last import of pure line GGP animals from RA-SE Genetics.

Proper sow body condition score key for profitability

A sow’s reproductive success and longevity potential are often measured through her body condition score. Proper body condition can impact short-term production and long-term profitability potential, so feeding sows to maintain adequate BCS through all production stages is an important part of an operation’s success. To aid producers, Purina Animal Nutrition offers its Feeding for 30 program.
“A sow’s body condition score is an indicator of her current productivity potential and a forecast of her future,” says Gawain Willis, director of nutrition services for Purina Animal Nutrition LLC. “Gestating sows should be fed to maintain a BCS of three on a five-point scale. Maintaining this BCS through all production stages is ideal.”
According to Purina, the sow should be fed so she is at a BCS of 3.0 at farrowing. Sows that farrow with adequate body condition have a greater potential to produce larger birth weights in the litter, greater milk production and a shorter return to estrus post-weaning.
An ideal BCS at farrowing begins during gestation. Producers can help sows to regain body condition from the last litter early in gestation and then provide nutrients to keep BCS steady through farrowing. If sows are bump-fed in late gestation, producers are encouraged to allow for extra weight gain and condition prior to farrowing by feeding for less condition in early gestation.
Temperature also plays a role in BCS. During the winter, additional feed may be needed to support the sow’s extra nutrient demand for body heat. Industry recommendations show that up to an additional 2,500 kilocalories of metabolizable energy per head per day may be needed to promote consistent BCS through winter.
On the flip side, less energy may be required during warmer periods. Overfeeding sows during gestation may result in over-conditioned sows entering the farrowing facility. These sows have a higher probability for farrowing difficulties and excessive weight loss in lactation.
To ensure that sows are in the proper condition, producers are encouraged to body condition score sows on a regular basis.
“Sows should be scored at least quarterly,” Willis recommends. “If sows are under- or over-conditioned, ration and management changes can be made to keep condition consistent. To promote consistency, employees should be trained and a standardized scoring practice should be followed.”
Another indicator of condition during gestation is weight gain. Research from North Carolina State University states that a sow should ideally gain 75 to 100 pounds and a gilt should gain 100 to 125 pounds during gestation.
This condition is required by the female after farrowing – helping her to not quickly lose body condition when nutrient requirements increase. Because lactating sows produce 15 to 25 pounds of milk per day, daily nutrient requirements are nearly three times higher in lactation than during gestation.
“Nutrient demands on lactating sows grow as sows in the U.S. continue to produce historically large litters,” Willis says. “If sows are not fed properly in gestation and lactation to support these litters, nutrients will be drawn from the sow’s body reserves and her body condition will be sacrificed. Over-conditioned sows may lose extra weight quickly and under-conditioned sows can fall to an even lower BCS.”
Research from the University of Minnesota shows that excessive body weight loss during lactation can lead to future problems including an extended weaning-to-estrus interval, smaller subsequent litter sizes and lower conception rates. The researchers also found greater probability for bone and spine issues as minerals are mobilized from bones during lactation of over- or under-conditioned sows.
According to Willis: “Well-conditioned sows are our best bet for reaching 30 pigs per sow per year. To meet the industry goal, we need to provide the nutrients that our sows require. Without adequate nutrients to care for larger litters, parity levels could suffer.
“On the other hand, the proper level of nutrients during each maternal stage can position the litter and the sow to reach their full potential. Success with sows often begins with a proper ration and a consistent body condition scoring program,” he says. 

Swine genetics company joins with sow breeder

PIC, a division of Genus and the world's leading swine genetics company, announces agreement with the Shennong Agricultural Group to jointly invest in the operation of a 1,000-sow nucleus farm in China's Yunnan province. Located in the southwest of the country, Yunnan is home to some 2.5 million sows.
Shennong Agricultural Group is the leading pig integrator in Yunnan province, employing more than 2,000 people. Since beginning operations as a commercial feed mill in 1999, the privately held firm has established pig production farms and value-added slaughtering, meat processing and retailing businesses. There are currently four multiplication units supplying over 10,000 breeding gilts a year to commercial sow farms, and 26 contract finishing sites for 300,000 market hogs produced annually. Downstream, the company operates two slaughter plants with combined capacity of three million pigs. Its facility in Kunming is the largest in Yunnan.
Shennong aims to expand its feed-to-fork integration by growing the production base to 80,000 sows with output of two million slaughter pigs a year by 2018. The collaboration with PIC builds on the relationship forged between the two companies based on the operation of in-house PIC multiplication. This successful track record convinced the companies to scale up their cooperation and work together to realize a sustainable platform to support their respective targets for growth.
Zuxun He, founder and chairman of Shennong, said, "Shennong has worked with PIC in China over the last nine years as we have developed our farming operations. We now have aggressive targets for expanding our pig production system as we develop an integrated supply chain to provide safe, healthy pork products to our customers. We are very pleased to have sealed this partnership with PIC to strengthen further our relationship and to provide a dedicated supply of PIC's world class genetics to meet the needs of our expansion plans."
Nancy Jiang, General Manager of Genus China, noted, "This is the latest in a series of announcements from PIC testifying to the company's commitment and drive to expand its footprint in the world's largest pork market. The country's industry is in transition from its historically volatile small farm base, a move which is supported by government policy to improve the security and hygiene of the pork supply chain. PIC is becoming the partner of choice for the large integrated projects that are proliferating as China continues to scale up its production."
The new farm will be stocked with great-grandparents from PIC's High Health Global Supply Chain later in the year. The joint venture, which will be managed by PIC, will produce grandparent females to drive Shennong's expansion and enhance PIC's capacity to supply its signature genetics to other leading players that are emerging in the rapid consolidation of China's pig industry.

German sow herd down 1.7 percent

German pig farms with a minimum of 50 pigs or 10 breeding sows decreased 1.7 percent as of November 2012, according to provisional results of the Federal Statistics Office (Destatis). Approximately 28.3 million pigs were counted in Germany and stock pigs increased about 0.5 percent during the last six months.
Compared to May 2012 numbers Germany’s pig herd grew 2.9 percent, but sows continued to decrease at a rate of 2.7 percent. As a result, the number of piglets also decreased by 2.2 percent. The decrease in sow and piglet numbers may be because of new European Union housing welfare regulations for pregnant sows, which went into effect Jan. 1, 2013.

Proper nutrition essential for long-term sow profitability

The stress of a gilt’s first litter can result in under-conditioning, which can affect the length of time it takes for the sow to return to estrus, and proper nutrition strategies are essential to prevent this lag time or a slump in future production, according to Mike Hemann, Great Lakes Region swine nutritionist for Purina Animal Nutrition LLC. Proper nutrition can also help to keep young sows in the herd longer.
Sow rations and feeding strategies should be created based on parity levels, said Hemann. If managing in groups, young gilts should be separated from older sows and fed accordingly when possible. “Profitability and overall success comes down to having a good parity structure within your sow herd,” he said. “The third parity is often your breakeven point so, after the second parity, the sow becomes profitable for the producer. It’s important to not have too many young gilts nor too many old sows in the herd to keep that balance between current profit and future profit potential.”
The herd should then be grouped and fed based on sow age and individual animal nutrient requirements based on a consistent and routine body condition scoring system. To prevent early burnout, younger gilts — or parity 1 females — should be fed nutrient-dense rations or provided with a top-dress when facility design challenges allow the producer to only feed one lactation ration. “[Parity 1] females require rations with a higher energy level and amino acid profile because they are limited on physical capacity for intake,” said Hemann. “When we get to an older group where the sows have a physical capacity for higher intake, we can drop those ration requirements to accommodate those higher intake-type sows.
“If we bring in properly conditioned gilts and feed them accordingly during the first parity, we can decrease the ‘sophomore slump’,” he said of the common lag seen in parity 2 sows. “Transitioning P1 gilts in good body condition allows us to bring them back as P2 sows that have the potential to produce a good amount of high-quality pigs in their second litter. Properly managed young sows also provide a base for future longevity in the herd."
The sows then become profitable in their third parity. “If we feed our young sows correctly, we’ll have the table set for profitable production in that third parity and beyond,” said Hemann.

Foremost Farms signs supply agreement with PIC Genetics

Foremost Farms Inc. has signed a supply agreement with global genetics leader PIC to allow for more PIC Gene Transfer boars, PIC399 and PIC337, to enter Foremost’s artificial insemination stud. Foremost plans to quickly contribute to its growing herd improvement program while optimizing production and improving the quality and efficiency of its sow operations, according to the company.
Both the PIC399 and PIC337 are the preferred boars of professional Filipino hog raisers seeking to produce the maximum kilos of quality pork per carcass efficiently with the least feed consumed and in the shortest time possible, said PIC. “We teamed up with PIC as our genetic supply partner to help us boost our production, lower costs and improve quality for our customers," said Sharon Tan, chief operating officer of Foremost. "With PIC’s global technical expertise and experience in supplying large operations, we are optimistic that we can improve our farm’s output and profitability."

Pig producers can improve feed conversion to cut costs

Pig producers could save nearly £9 per pig by improving their finishers' feed efficiency by 0.54, according to Matthew Curtis, managing director of Yorkshire-based pig breeding company ACMC Ltd.
The British Pig Executive's Pig Yearbook 2012 shows that while the feed conversion for ‘average’ feeding herds is 2.82, the top 10 percent manage 2.28. “If the figure for the average herds is 2.82, then this means there are many herds below that figure, so there is still plenty of scope for improvement,” said Curtis.
He said that with feed at the £261.83 per metric ton figure quoted in the Yearbook, if a 500-sow herd, producing 22 pigs per sow per year, improved from average to the top 10 percent it would save nearly £99,000 annually in feed costs. In reality, the savings could be much higher as the price of feed has risen substantially — and is likely to continue to rise.
Apart from paying attention to management, housing and nutrition, Curtis said a direct route to improving feed conversion is to use high-quality semen from, ideally, a nominated artificial insemination boar. Not only should these be selected on their estimated breeding value, but they should also be chosen from boars which have a history of selection for feed efficiency — not just growth.
Curtis said that while he acknowledges that pig producers are underpaid for their end product and the industry is working to increase returns, improving feed conversion is something which farmers can actually do themselves.

Topigs reaches 28.8 weaned piglets per sow in 2011

Pig farms with Topigs sows produced an average of 28.8 weaned piglets per sow per year in 2011, according to the company's latest report — the technical results from 678 Dutch farms with a total of almost 332,0000 sows.
The top 10 percent of farms achieved 31.6 weaned piglets per sow per year. In 2011 the production of Topigs sows rose by 0.7 piglets. This is a bigger increase than in previous years where the average was 0.5 piglets per year, according to company data. Despite the increase in production, piglet mortality remains at roughly the same level as several years ago, and the sow replacement rate has not risen, either.
A growing number of farms are weaning 30 or more piglets per sow per year. In 2011 a total of 164 farms achieved this and 16 farms achieved a production of 32 or more piglets per sow per year. 

Topigs, Norsvin sign long-term collaboration agreement

Topigs and Norsvin have signed a strategic agreement that marks the start of a long-term collaboration between the two pig breeding companies.
The agreement makes it possible for Norsvin to use the Topigs Z-line for production of commercial sows in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland. Furthermore, it enables both companies to have access to new products and technology.
Specific pathogen-free, SPF, breeding stock and semen will be imported from the Netherlands or other approved high-health Topigs sources to build up a breeding population of Topigs Z-line breeding pigs in Norway. The import will allow Norsvin to introduce commercial sows with Topigs Z-line genes onto the Scandinavian market in early 2013.
Another part of the agreement is about the cooperation between Topigs and Norsvin in the field of research and development. Norsvin and Topigs have previously worked together on specific R&D projects and have now agreed to investigate the possibilities for further collaboration in research on swine genetics. 

PIC stocks first phase of San Miguel Foods sow unit

PIC Philippines has flown in 1,317 Great Grand Parent and Grand Parent breeders from Canada to stock the first phase of the newly constructed 5,000-sow unit of San Miguel Foods Inc. in Quezon province, the first of two full plane loads scheduled for 2012 delivery.
The second load of PIC genetics will complete the stocking of the first phase of the new San Miguel Foods unit and play a major role in driving the company's long-term expansion plans, according to a company statement. These importations strengthen both companies’ partnership and commitment to total farm-to-fork quality, and highlight their leadership positions in the pork industry since the first importation in 1994. 

TOPIGS introduces nutritional feeding advice for sows

After several years of investigation, research and validation the Dutch-based TOPIGS nutritional team has introduced a new feeding advice specifically for their genetics.
The international genetics supplier now provides specific feeding advice for its TOPIGS 20 and TOPIGS 40 lines, as it had become clear that the two lines had different nutritional requirements, according to the company. In the new feeding advice, separate nutritional requirements are given for primiparous and multiparous sows. Sows can be fed more precisely and in line with their needs. TOPIGS has also developed two separate manuals for the corn – soybean and wheat – barley-orientated markets.
“Nowadays, highly productive sows have different nutritional needs compared with sows a few years ago, so sow feeding guidelines need to be continuously updated,” said a company representative. With the new feeding advice for lactating sows, sows before insemination and sows during gestation, farmers now have better tools for achieving maximum production and for realizing more of the high genetic potential of the TOPIGS sow, he said.
With a production of 1.1 million crossbred gilts and 7 million doses of semen per year, TOPIGS is one of the biggest genetics suppliers in the world.  

British Pig Executive releases new sow culling guidelines

Direct income from cull sows should not be a major factor in determining sow culling policies, said the British Pig Executive in its new culling management guidelines; rather, it should only account for around 2% of total sales income.
Pig producers should instead focus on maintaining an optimum parity profile by regularly replacing older or less productive sows and keeping the herd’s overall performance steady. Sow culling rates have a direct correlation with economic efficiency. “Producers should aim for an average herd parity no greater than 2.8," said BPEX knowledge transfer manager Angela Cliff. "It’s important to understand why individual sows are culled and to manage voluntary or selected culling consistently. Decide what your target maximum parity is for each animal and then stick to it. Voluntary culling is also carried out to remove any sows not performing as well as they should. For example, those that have shown farrowing difficulties, poor litter size or poor lactation and rearing ability.”
At the same time, pig producers should minimize the level of involuntary or forced culling, most commonly caused by fertility problems, lameness or disease. “Pig producers should continually record sow condition and performance and pay close attention to management of gilt selection, feeding strategies and pen and floor condition,” said Cliff.
To find out the economic impact of retaining older, less productive sows, it is worth calculating the cost of ‘empty days’:

• Cost per sow-day = Total annual breeding herd expenditure / (productive sows x 365)
• Cost of reproductive failure = Cost per sow-day x empty days per annum / pigs born alive (sold) per sow per year 

TOPIGS sows weaned average 28.1 piglets each in 2010

Pig farms with TOPIGS sows weaned an average of 28.1 piglets per sow in 2010, according to results from a sow management system linked to TOPIGS.
Data was gathered from 748 Dutch farms with a total of nearly 337,000 sows. The top 10% of farms achieved 30.9 weaned piglets per sow per year. At the same time, mortality of the piglets has fallen slightly and the average piglet mortality is 11.9%, down from both 2009 and 2008 (12.1%). For the top 10% of farms the mortality rate was 10.4%.
Ninety farms (12% of the total) weaned more than 30 piglets per sow per year. The best farm weaned 33.3 piglets per sow per year.

Australia’s pig producers receive semen by helicopter

With flood waters in Queensland, Australia, covering an area the size of Germany and France many piggeries have become isolated. This has meant that they have been unable to receive – by conventional means at least – any semen for sows ready to be mated.
Yet semen supplier Pork Storks Australia has continued to deliver its product to piggeries isolated by the waters.
While deliveries were initially made with vehicles crossing flooded roads and bridges, safety issues meant that this approach had to cease, and the company decided that it needed to take a more pro-active approach, securing the use of a helicopter and a light plane to deliver semen to isolated piggeries.
Bridget Jervois, operations at Prok Storks Australia said: “We wanted to act early to acquire helicopters to ensure that customers’ mating programs were minimally disrupted. That said, there were, and continue to be, several difficulties to overcome as part of our plan, including extreme weather conditions from a tropical cyclone, a couple of forced landings, and the limited availability of aircraft in light of evacuations of entire towns.
“The team also coordinated the delivery of semen to regional landing sites, where customers came to collect the semen. What’s more, Pork Storks Australia also used their helicopter to deliver emergency veterinary supplies to these isolated piggeries.” 

Sows in groups produce heavier piglets

New research released by sow breeding firm Topigs shows that 40,000 of its sows from 59 Dutch farms housed in groups produced piglets with a birth weight 61 grams higher than those housed individually. Results of the research, conducted in 2008-2009, were backed up certain scientific papers, the company said.
Researchers cited number of factors in reporting results: group housing allows sows to interact socially and perform beneficial behavioral patterns; group-housed sows exercise more; and group-housed sows lose less body energy through radiation in cold. European welfare regulations from 2013 onwards require sows to be housed in groups during gestation.