Newsletter 30th May 2006
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We have 4 new features this week: Making Good Pork Perfect By Jeanine Wallace, Ontario Pork - The pork value chain involves many processes, from the farm through to the slaughterhouse, restaurant and grocery trades. Large Groups for Grower-Finisher Pigs, Feeding and Social Behaviour By Thusith S. Samarakone and Harold W. Gonyou and published by the Prairie Swine Center - Most studies on feeding and social behaviours of pigs have been conducted on groups of fewer than 40 pigs/group. However, these group sizes are much smaller than some that are now used in some commercial operations (100-1000 pigs/group) in North America and elsewhere. Producers Decisions By Allen Prosche, Pork Central Coordinator, University of Nebraska-Lincoln - Nebraska Swine Report 2006 : The business decisions pork producers make are extremely important. Decisions increase in importance at the same time they become harder to make. Producing Hydrogen from Swine Manure? By Dr. Jun Zhu, Associate Professor, U of MN Southern Research and Outreach Center - Energy is vital to global prosperity, yet dependence on fossil fuels as our primary energy source contributes to global climate change, environmental degradation, and health problems. 
 Canada CFIA Invites Comments on Proposed Changes to Canadian Animal Transport Regulations The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is calling for public input as it explores possible changes to regulations governing the transportation of animals in Canada. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is considering several changes in 2006 to health of animals regulations under the Health of Animals Act. Scientists Explore Advantages of Automated Systems for Tracking the Weight of Pigs In an effort to help swine producers better utilize available labor, while at the same ensuring larger numbers of market hogs reach the processing plant at core weight, the Prairie Swine Centre in Saskatoon has kicked off a three year study which will explore the use of autosort weighing systems. Winnipeg retains incentives for pork plant Winnipeg city council voted to uphold a C$3.4 million incentive package for a proposed pork processing plant, despite opposition from residents worried about the impact on air and water quality in the western Canadian city. Canadian Pork Council Initiates Action to Clarify ACA Space Allocation Requirements The Canadian Pork Council says producer concerns related to space allowance requirements under the new Animal Care Assessment Tool are being explored and will be addressed over the next year or so.   United States Japanese rules affect US pork industry New Japanese food import standards may require more US testing and could force some U.S. pork producers to change what they feed their hogs. With Japan banning US beef amid fears about mad cow disease, the pork industry is cautious. The National Pork Board says one animal in violation of the Japanese regulations, which go into effect Monday, could imperil the lucrative Japanese market. Radio-frequency chips coming soon The RFID system isn't expected to be fully online until 2009, but already it's clear that in the sprawling US beef and dairy industries many producers will automate data gathering with radio-frequency chips attached to cattle ears. However, pork and poultry producers may not have such worries. Pigs are unlikely to need RFID because the nation's 60 million hogs generally remain in large, easily identifiable lots, said a SII Task Force spokesman. There’s a reason Indiana is tenderloin capital Indiana, with more than 6 million, is fifth in the nation in hog numbers and Gov. Mitch Daniels wants to double that amount over the next 20 years. The goal ties in with the state’s objective to boost biofuel production in Indiana. A byproduct of that fuel production can serve as livestock feed, reports the Herald bulletin. Demand For Pork Down on Previous Year In their weekly review of the US hog industry, Glenn Grimes and Ron Plain report that demand for pork at the consumer level for January-April is down 6.2% from 12 months earlier. The good news as to demand for the pork sector is live demand. For January-April, demand for live hogs shows a loss of only 2.9 percent.  US Delegation, Pork Industry Visits Japan’s Food Safety Agency A US delegation including representatives from the Pork Checkoff and the US Meat Export Federation visited the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare recently to discuss new standards for veterinary drugs and other chemicals in food products entering the Japanese market. 2006 World Pork Expo set for June 8-10 The 18th annual World Pork Expo will be held the June 8-10, 2006, at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines. As the largest pork-industry trade show and exhibition in the world, the expo draws some 30,000 pork producers, exhibitors and visitors from across the country and around the globe. US Swine Economics Report In his regular report on the US Swine industry, Ron Plain says that the US pork industry has been fortunate to avoid a major disease problem like those that are plaguing other meats. However, the health status of the American swine herd is not an accident, he comments. Weekly Roberts Report In his US Commodity Market Report, Mike Roberts says that pork production reported last week as large and seasonal pork-sales declines indicate lower pork prices are on the horizon. United States Streamlines Import Restrictions on EU Swine The USDA's APHIS is amending its regulations regarding the importation of animals and animal products into the United States from a region of the EU. This final rule will apply a uniform set of import requirements for classical swine fever to the EU-15.  United Kingdom Opportunities for pig contract finishing A seminar is being held at the Cereals 2006 event to inform arable farmers about the opportunities in contract finishing pigs. They will learn how it generates useful income, helps keep labour occupied, provides a ready market for straw, and produces manure to provide a cushion against high fertiliser prices and – according to many users – a repeatable half-a-tonne-an-acre yield benefit.  Canada looks to UK to fill vacancies Recruiting and retaining skilled labour may be a hot topic among UK pig producers, but the loss of staff is not only a domestic problem, it is affecting producers worldwide too. Canada's Elite Swine used the Pig and Poultry Fair as an opportunity to recruit more UK staff for their units, having successfully found staff here before, according to FWi. Pig Yearbook shows farms outperformed British pigs have performed better but the herd has shrunk by 7.2% over the past 12 months, according to the newly-published Pig Yearbook, but the Meat and Livestock Commission, which compiles the data, also found a number of encouraging factors. Pig prices inch up despite weaker euro UK - Spot and contract quotes for slaughter pig supplies for the week commencing 22 May were tending firmer, reports FWi. Last weeks Deadweight Adjusted Pig Price had moved up to 101.32p and as a result contract base prices linked to the DAPP had also risen.  Viet Nam Central Vietnam plagued by foot-and-mouth disease Vietnam’s Quang Nam province is in the grip of a foot-and-mouth disease epidemic, with 52 outbreak zones discovered in 12 districts so far, the provincial veterinary department said last week.  New Zealand No ban on New Zealand meat Media reports last week, from an overseas news agency, that the Ukraine had banned imports of New Zealand meat are incorrect, say the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA).  China China Hog Market Weekly In this weeks China Live Hog Market Weekly, eFeedLink report that sluggish pork demand weighs on prices in the week ending May 22, 2006. Although live hog prices in most production regions in China were stable to marginally higher for short periods during the week ending May 22, prices generally remained weak.   Poland Poland seeks EU support over Russia's import ban on meat products Polish Agriculture Minister Andrzej Lepper asked his EU interlocutors in Brussels Monday to make joint efforts to persuade Russia into lifting its import ban on Polish meat products introduced last November, the Polish News Agency reported. That's all for this week! Ed. |
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