Cost of Production Forecast – US versus Canada Comparison
Grant Lazaruk from Hytek Ltd explains how the pig industries in Canada and the US compare in terms of the technical aspects of pig production, processing and marketing. He was addressing the Banff Pork Seminar earlier this year.

Meat Tenderness and Muscle Development
Several studies have shown that some events in muscle development and postnatal growth are related to meat quality traits, according to Niels Oksbjerg, M. Therkildsen and P.M. Nissenn from the University of Aarhus in Denmark, in a paper presented to the...

Competing in the International Pork Market
Jeff Kucharski of the Alberta Livestock & Meat Agency (ALMA) explained the background and functions of the Agency to participants at the Banff Pork Seminar 2009.

Application of Air Filtration Systems in Swine Operations
Darwin L. Reicks from the Swine Vet Center in St Peter, Minnesota, explains how air filtration systems can help control porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS). He was speaking at the Banff Pork Seminar 2009.

Food Safety in Pork Production and Processing
Pork production has safety implications for both producers and consumers, Dr Brian Evans, the executive vice president of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency told the recent World Pork Conference in Qingdao China. By ThePigSite Senior Editor Chris H...

The Science Behind the Issues in Animal Welfare
In her paper presented at the Banff Pork Seminar 2009, Dr Tina M. Widowski of the University of Guelph reviewed the research that has been published on the most important issues in welfare of pigs of all ages. She also explained how this knowledge contributes...

Mixed Fortunes of the French Industry on Show
A report from SPACE 2009 on the highs and lows of France's livestock sectors by Stuart Lumb for ThePigSite.

Breeding Techniques Have Potential to Lower Incidence of PCVAD
The incidence of porcine circovirus-associated disease (PCVAD) can be reduced by selecting for 65-day weight along with porcine circovirus (PCV2) viraemia and antibody titres, conclude Jared S. Bates and colleagues. Their experimental work is published...

Effect of Dam Parity on Growth Performance and Immunity of Weaned Pigs
Growth performance in the nursery may be affected by dam parity. That is the conclusion from work reported by Erin E. Carney and colleagues in their paper published in the 2009 Nebraska Swine Report.

Supply Management and the Ontario Pork Industry
The supply management system and its advantages and disadvantages are described by a group from the University of Guelph. Their paper was presented at the Ontario Pork meeting in September 2009.

Dam Parity Affects Litter Performance and Passive Immunity
Litter performance and passive immunity may be affected by dam parity, concluded Erin E. Carney and co-authors in their paper published in the 2009 Nebraska Swine Report.

Chinese Industry Needs to Modernise and Industrialise
Pig meat production in China, the world's largest meat producer, is growing and in particular the country is seeing a growth in branded products, writes ThePigSite Senior Editor, Chris Harris.

Update on New Piglet Diarrhoea in Europe
Recent reports about a possible new threat of piglet diarrhoea in Denmark and France have sparked concern in the EU pig industry. Jackie Linden, editor of ThePigSite, reviews the information currently available.

Nebraska Study Shows DDGS, Beta-Agonist Do Not Affect Growing-Finishing Pigs
Growth performance of growing-finishing castrates was not affected by increasing dietary distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS; 0 to 40 per cent) or supplementing ractopamine, according to Roman Moreno and co-authors in their paper published in...

Nutrition During Gilt Development and Genetic Line Affect Reproduction
Twenty-five per cent energy restriction during development delays sexual maturity of gilts but has no effect on reproductive rate to parity 1 of those reaching sexual maturity, according to Rodger K. Johnson and co-authors in a paper published in the...

Banff Pork Seminar 2009
The 38th Banff Pork Seminar 2009 was held in Banff, Canada, in January 2009. The proceedings comprises five plenary papers plus break-out sessions and abstracts.

Economy of Adding Fibrous Feedstuffs to Sow Gestation Diets
Producers may be able to improve the profitability of their operation by using fibrous feed ingredients in sow gestation diets, according to a paper presented by by Duane E. Reese and Allen Prosch in the 2009 Nebraska Swine Report.

Varying Concentrations of DDGS in Diets for Growing-Finishing Pigs
Growth performance of growing-finishing pigs was maintained as dietary corn distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) inclusion increased from 0 to 15 per cent, according to R. Moreno and co-authors in a paper published in the 2009 Nebraska Swine ...

Nebraska Swine Report 2009
The Nebraska Swine Report for 2009 comprises nine papers covering nutrition, health and genetics.

New Feed Strategies Discussed by European Pig Producers
This year's European Pig Producers' (EPP) Congress was held in the city of Graz in Austria in June. The focus of the conference was meeting new challenges. Jackie Linden, editor of ThePigSite, summarises the session on new feed strategies.

Minnesota Pork Congress 2009
The Minnesota Pork Congress 2009 Producer Education Seminars were held on 21 to 22 January 2009.

Effective Ventilation 1
Harry Huffman of Huffman Engineering explained to delegates at the 2009 London Swine Conference about the importance of good air quality in pig houses, how to achieve it and how to avoid common mistakes.

Benchmarking and Tools to Maximise Profit
At this year's London Swine Conference, Greg Bilbrey of Agri Stats Inc. explained the benefits of benchmarking to optimise the business.