Blogs

SwineCast 0689 Show Notes:

• Strong balance sheet and a good business plan opens lender doors, according to Paul DeBriyn, President and CEO of AgStar Financial.

How can you not love this! Pigs that play. This art and design project from Utrecht School of the Arts (HKU) Wageningen University and Research Centre aims to understand how provide entertainment to pigs.

The driver for this research is European legislation that requires pig farmers to provide entertainment in the pens to combat boredom, aggression and tail biting amongst pigs, which will hopefully eliminate the need for routine tail-docking.

Back in the 80's, some of Mike Brumm's research at the University of Nebraska indicated room temperatures could be lowered overnight in the nursery without affecting health or efficiency. Dr. Lee Johnston, University of Minnesota, has picked up that baton and carries it with updated information but similar results. Lowering that furnace kick-on setting fifteen degrees can drop your fuel bill around 20% [audio].

At The Meeting returns to SwineCast with a deep dive on bio-security [audio]. The Morrison Group reviews practices and procedures that lessen your potential for a profit-numbing break.

Conversations from the Iowa Pork Congress highlights that new construction is underway in every quadrant of the state. Dr. Steve Meyer says his larger concern at the moment is shackle space, not floor space. And the issue may grow in 2013.

Dr. Steve Meyer, Paragon Economics, provided an update on the state of the meat and poultry markets. His main take away is that the demand continued to struggle late 2011.

The bad news is that these "annual" numbers for 2011 have been getting worse and worse as the year has progressed.

Steve reminds us that the indexes only describe how demand is changing, not why a change is occurring. He believes consumer incomes and spending was the major negative force in the domestic market in 2011.

Charts below from Paragon Economics, using USDA data.

SwineCast 0688 Show Notes:

• Biosecurity from the practitioner's perspective with the Morrison Group.  And how much IS land going for in DeKalb County, IL?
• Sharing the details on an effort to move away from PRRS positive-unstable status. 
• Link to"The “Holy Grail” of biosecurity: Achieving sustainable RRSV freedom in swine-dense regions"
• Link to powerpoint slides "Northeast Illinois PRRS ARC The Road to PRRS Elimination?"
• Link to "Economic impact of filtration as an intervention to prevent PRRS introductions: A case study of a 3200 farrow-to-finish system"
• Link to "PRRS virus-free production – The Pipestone System approach"

SwineCast 0687 Show Notes:

• At the 2012 Minnesota Pork Congress, Dr. Lee Johnston, professor of Swine Nutrition and Management at the West Central Research and Outreach Center of the University of MN presented research on dropping nighttime temperatures in the nursery and lowering fuel costs some 20%.  However, how you lower the thermostat and the health of the pigs are significant considerations.  Dr. Johnston's full presentation and others will be online soon at SwineCast.com/ConferenceConnection.

SwineCast will be joining you at the MN Pork Congress (St. Paul, Jan 18-19) and the Iowa Pork Congress (Des Moines, Jan 25-26).  In addition we'll be sharing Farmscape.ca coverage of the Banff Swine Seminar, courtesy good friend Bruce Cochrane.  Be sure to check back regularly, or better yet set up your free downloads via iTunes to carry SwineCast with you [iTunes link].

Be sure to hear the conversation with Chris Novak, CEO of the National Pork Board, as we discuss strategic communication efforts currently underway to increase consumption in the U.S.  Good stuff, and a link to the McRib Tracker website!

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SwineCast 0686 Show Notes:

• National Pork Board CEO Chris Novak discusses the "Pork.  Be Inspired." campaign along with other strategic marketing efforts.
• Link to the McRib Locator
• Link to 2011 Iowa Pork Congress presentations at SwineCast.com

SwineCast 0685 Show Notes:

• Farmscape's Bruce Cochrane shares this conversation with the Prairie Swine Centre's Ken Engle, as they look at efforts to get research into production and presentations planned for the upcoming Banff Swine Seminar.