http://www.thelandonline.com en-us Copyright CNHI All Rights Reserved. 5 Fri, 20 Jun 2008 03:03:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_170172238.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_170172238.html These are difficult times for hog producers with record high feed costs. We often get the question, “if I am losing money on every pig, when should I sell them?” Fri, 23 May 2008 03:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_141165602.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_141165602.html One item I have been suggesting to pork producers is to evaluate their marketing weights. This is a good idea to do occasionally regardless of the financial situation, but is especially important with the current high feed costs. Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_115105058.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_115105058.html In some countries it has been found that people exposed to livestock — including pigs, cattle and horses — are at higher risk of carrying methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus in their noses, and therefore are likely to be at elevated risk of developing MRSA infections. Fri, 28 Mar 2008 03:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_087122048.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_087122048.html Glycerol could serve as an energy source for pigs, but limited research has been reported on its nutritional value in swine diets. Preliminary research done in Iowa with nursery pigs and growing-finishing pigs suggests that glycerol contains nearly as much energy as that found in corn. Fri, 29 Feb 2008 03:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_058170708.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_058170708.html Although the initial reaction of pork producers in times like these may be to look at cutting corners, the best plan is to evaluate the various areas of costs and returns, and determine how to more efficiently produce pork on the farm. One area to evaluate is energy usage and expense. Fri, 01 Feb 2008 03:05:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_030123205.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_030123205.html The "country of origin labeling" issue has been the topic of much debate. Concerns over foreign animal diseases, including avian flu, bovine spongiform encephalopathy and a variety of food safety issues with food products imported from China have really pushed the COOL issue into the spotlight. Fri, 11 Jan 2008 14:39:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_011144101.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_011144101.html Individual stalls are the current primary housing system used for pregnant sows in the United States. Public sentiment, however, has been pushing to move away from individual housing toward group housing of gestation sows. Fri, 07 Dec 2007 03:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_334115451.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_334115451.html Indirectly, health problems can affect feed intake or subsequent reproductive performance of the sow depending upon the health problem and cause sow removals eventually. Fri, 09 Nov 2007 03:05:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_306103546.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_306103546.html Traditional, small-scale, diverse livestock and cropping systems are being replaced by larger-scale, specialized production systems, driven largely by economics. Educational needs have changed also, in large part, from a broader level of understanding needed to much more specific and technical information. Fri, 12 Oct 2007 03:05:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_278084514.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_278084514.html Niche marketing is an idea we have become familiar with over the last decade, as farmers strive to increase profitability in a way that makes sense for their particular hog operation. Fri, 14 Sep 2007 03:06:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_250115538.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_250115538.html The 34th annual Allen D. Leman Swine Conference, which is open to everyone involved in the swine industry, will be held Sept. 15-18 at the RiverCentre in St. Paul. Swine leaders from around the world will gather to hear and discuss important current issues affecting the swine industry. Thu, 19 Jul 2007 18:35:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_192154401.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_192154401.html The development of safe, low-cost and efficient control technologies are in high demand, especially technologies that reduce generation of the airborne pollutants (diet manipulation or animal solid-liquid separation) that would solve both the indoor air quality problem (lower concentrations for workers and animals) and reduce the emission of the these pollutants to the neighbors and the atmosphere. Fri, 22 Jun 2007 03:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_166142520.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_166142520.html Porcine Circovirus Type 2 Disease has a curious history in North America. Fri, 25 May 2007 03:05:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_137163513.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_137163513.html Phosphorus loss risk can be minimized by controlling erosion, avoiding winter manure applications, limiting rates for any single manure application to the equivalent of about 200 pounds P2O5 per acre, and limiting total applications over several years to amounts that prevent buildup of excessive soil P. Fri, 27 Apr 2007 03:04:00 +0000 http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_110124424.html http://www.thelandonline.com/porkprofessor/local_story_110124424.html The salvation of most production systems is not in early adoption of new technologies, but rather in the disciplined use of abilities already at hand.