* "Higher grain prices and lower hog prices have put producers in a squeeze"

Tim Maiers Spokesman for the Springfield-based Illinois Pork Producers Association

With feed prices at record highs, the theme of this year's conference is on how producers can stay profitable, said Tim Maiers, spokesman for the Springfield-based Illinois Pork Producers Association.

"Higher grain prices and lower hog prices have put producers in a squeeze," he said.

Helping those producers find a way out of that squeeze is the focus of 20 educational seminars slated during the expo, said Maiers.

Presenting one seminar is Hans Stein, a University of Illinois Extension swine nutritionist who suggests finding feed alternatives for some of the corn in hog diets.

Distillers dried grains - generated at many ethanol plants - are readily available in Illinois, said Stein, adding that a diet of up to 20 percent DDGs can work for pigs.

Other alternatives include oats, barley, and wheat byproducts along with leftover products from the food processing industry, he said.

For the full story PJ Star.