Swine Grist - Spring 2021

Swine Grist

A PERIODIC NEWSLETTER PRODUCED

BY GRAND VALLEY FORTIFIERS VOLUME 23, ISSUE 1 | SPRING 2021

Dear Friends, Spring officially arrived on Saturday March 20th and with it came some incredible Spring weather. It is likely that hog producers are even more excited about the pork prices that we are achieving and the CME futures that we are seeing. With April & May Futures trading around $95/cwt and June, July and August around $100/cwt, 2021 is looking like it should be a very profitable year for pork producers, notwithstanding much higher feed costs than experienced in the previous decade. With high feed costs and high pork prices, producers are encouraged to invest in alternative ingredients, amino acids and micro ingredients that research has proven to improve feed conversion and increase ADG. The more pigs through the barn in the lucrative months, the better. Also, if history is a guide, it may be wise to carefully consider forward contracting hogs into the fall months. Included in this Grist is an update on the GVF Profit Finder program which now has almost 150 barns enrolled. This weekly report is pushed to Producers’ in-boxes, providing real time dashboard reporting on the effectiveness of their barn(s) sort and shipping weights, putting opportunity dollars left on the table, top of mind. If interested, speak to your GVF Swine Specialist for more information.

With the growing need for large corporations to address Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions in their supply chain, and livestock producers often getting a bum rap for this, GVF is becoming more knowledgeable on this subject and investing in modelling tools that, we believe will help provide opportunities for hog producers in the future. In Rick Fernandes’ article on page 2, you will learn about our initial carbon footprint pilot study which was completed in early winter 2020. Wishing you a safe and productive planting season and profitable 2021!

Sincerely, Ian Ross, President & CEO

SOYA MEAL ALTERNATIVES

by: MARTIN CLUNIES, PH.D. Monogastric Nutritionist, Grand Valley Fortifiers

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ost recently the livestock feed ingredient protein market is experiencing a spike in prices, led by soybean meal whose prices have risen 54% from the 10-year average of approximately $450 per tonne.

All protein ingredients have increased significantly in price. The implications are not just for proteins, but also for oils, which are produced as a part of the soybean meal production system. Most of the spike in price has been driven around the fear of low bean supplies for increasing crush requirements and China’s increasing demand for proteins as the affluence of its population rises. As a backdrop to this, China has been building back its pig herd population after the devastation of African Swine Fever and there is the perceived notion of increasing soybean demand over the next year.

What is the alternative to expensive soybean meal as livestock producers attempt to control feed costs? Alternative ingredients include protein meals such as canola meal, corn gluten meal, meat, pork and poultry meals, sunflower meal, peas and legumes. Other energy protein ingredients include Dried Distillers Grains with Solubles (DDGS) and wheat shorts or middlings. Despite being cheaper, each of these have increased in price following soybean meal and corn.

The first alternative is canola meal, typically only used in poultry diets in Ontario, this protein is used in most pig diets in Western Canada, reflecting the price advantage of being close to where the majority of Canadian the crop is grown. Canola meal with 36-38% protein is low in energy and high in the sulfur amino acids methionine & cysteine, and so its use in pig diets is GRAND VALLEY FORTIFIERS PO Box 726 Cambridge ON N1R 5W6 1-800-567-4400 grandvalley.com

dependent upon being combined with reasonably priced oil/fat and lysine.

Due to its associated low palatability, it is often limited to less than 5% of the diet and so the savings potential is limited. Corn Gluten Meal which has 65% protein and is relatively high in energy, is extremely deficient in lysine (the first limiting amino acid in swine feed) and thus, even with very cheap lysine, rarely prices in for use in pig diets. Meat meal with 49% protein and pork meal with 57% protein, are expensive at this time due to the fluctuating animal processing capacity. The supply of both have been limited, which has put a lot more upward pressure on the demand and price of soybean meal. Meat meal use in Canadian pig feeds is limited due to the risk of ractopamine residues associated with cattle being fed Optaflexx (Ractopamine).

Pork meal could be still considered a risk by many as concern with PED transmission is significant. Both are excellent sources of the minerals calcium and phosphorus. While being higher in energy, compared to soybean meal, and provides a greater advantage for use in poultry diets where the levels of those minerals and energy are much higher compared to pig diets.

Poultry meal with its high protein value of 65% is used primarily in pet foods and typically priced out of the livestock feed market. Feather meal is high in protein at 78% with its high sulfur amino acid cysteine content is used primarily at a low inclusion of 2-3.5% in poultry diets. Peas and legumes containing 21-23% protein are more commonly grown in prairie regions, are low in sulfur amino acids, and provide the best economics when combined with wheat and low methionine pricing to complement its protein balance.

Peas and legumes are highly palatable and can be included in diets at up to 20% or more. Then there are DDGS which are a byproduct of alcohol fermentation from the starch of the corn grain and are commonly used in pig diets at anywhere from 10-30% of the diet. Though deficient in lysine, DDGS has approximately the same energy as corn, and so when combined with Ian Ross, President & CEO | David Ross, VP & CMO Martin Clunies, Ph.D. | Bruce Schumann | Adam Totafurno | Youngji Rho, Ph.D., Monogastric Nutritionists Michael Peckover, Publisher

supplemental lysine, DDGS can result in significant saving when feeding pigs. With some processors concerned about the softness of belly fat and the feeding of high linoleic acid oils (corn, soya oil), regular DDGS with high oil levels may have to be limited during the last 30 days of feeding prior to marketing. More recently a higher protein DDGS, commonly referred to as Hi-Pro has emerged from the extraction of the residual corn oil as a source of diesel fuel. The resulting product, while being lower in energy compared to more traditional sources, provides ample savings when included in pig diets.

Lastly there are wheat shorts or middling, while not being a protein meal, its price has usually led to it being used in pig diets. Wheat shorts or middlings, with 16% protein, are more like wheat with twice the level of lysine. Combined with high energy roasted soybeans or extruded beans, wheat shorts often provide significant feeds cost savings. However, with the present high price of extruded beans those feed cost savings have diminished.

For those farms which do not have an extra feed bin to store an additional protein ingredient, an alternative strategy for feed cost savings is maximizing the supplementation of amino acids in their feeds. This can also be done in combination with any of the aforementioned ingredients to create additional savings. While traditionally the addition of lysine, methionine and threonine have been common in pig feeds, the addition of tryptophan and valine in small amounts, while both being expensive, may allow the greater addition of cheap lysine, methionine and threonine to create additional savings by reducing soybean meal use even further.

While the high cost of feeds is a challenge for producers, there is opportunity to utilize other protein meals in combination with amino acids to create feed cost savings compared to high-priced soybean meal. With the current pricing of soybean meal and alternative protein ingredients, regular DDGS offers the best alternative for saving pig farmers the most on their feed bill. In situations where processors are concerned with softer belly fat in the resulting carcasses, then the use of Hi-Pro DDGS would be advisable. Complemented with economically maximizing the use of amino acids, these strategies maximize the feed savings that can be realized with alternative ingredients to soybean meal. If you’re interested in reviewing your current diets we encourage you to reach out to a GVF Swine Specialist or someone from our Monogastric Nutrition Team. n

FEEDING FOR WEANING AGE AND WEIGHT

by: VICTORIA SEIP Swine Specialist, Grand Valley Fortifiers

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ver the last several decades, our industry has gone through a transition of weaning ages to try and maximize farrowing room productivity to produce as many pigs as possible. What was commonly a 19-21day old, weaned pig has started to see a shift towards 24-26 days weaned.

Weaning poses many stressors on the young animal; they are no longer protected by passive immunity from their mother and they are moved to a completely different environment where, in an instant, they must adapt to surviving on solid feed. The management we provide for them in the first week to teach these neonatal animals how to eat is crucial to help them adapt to their new environment. When it comes to feeding them, both weaning weight and age play a key part in determining the proper feed budget for piglets.

The most important factor to consider when choosing a nursery budget is it is not a “one size fits all” approach. This is where the weaning weight and age play a key role in determining which feeds to start a group on. Pigs that are weaned at an older age may have further developed digestive enzymes allowing them to break down cereal grains and vegetable proteins more efficiently than those weaned earlier. Since the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) is better able to break down these ingredients, often we can successfully

feed a starter that contains more of these ingredients because the pigs are able to utilize those feeds efficiently (such as BioSure™ Link or BioForce® 180).

When we are dealing with a younger weaned animal, they do not yet have the same development in their physiology to process these ingredients and therefore must have a diet that includes ingredients, such as milk, in order to fully utilize their feed and have maximum performance (such as BioSure™ Boost, BioSure™ Ignite and BioSure™ Surge). Older weaned pigs will often start looking for an additional food source from mom since at some point later in her lactation, her milk production will peak, and her offspring will need to find an additional food source. The more creep feed an animal consumes in the neonatal period, the better the transition at weaning.

Weaning weight also plays a factor with the feed budget chosen to maximize piglet performance and health. Larger weaning weights and age are often correlated, meaning that the older the pig you wean, the heavier the weaning weight. It is important to consider, however, that the largest pigs in a litter are often those that had a front well-working teat and were able to get the best source of milk from the sow. They often have the lowest creep feed or solid feed intake prior to weaning because they simply did not need it. The smallest pigs in the litter will often have consumed more creep feed as they did not have the same milk supply or intake. This will help them transition at weaning.

The take-away message is that weaning weight and age are important factors that need to be considered when considering the optimal starter budget for your farm. The most expensive option does not always make sense, however at the same time the cheapest is not always the right choice either. You need to let your production cycle and numbers (weaning weight and age) determine the best way to feed your pigs.

Grand Valley Fortifiers and Primary Diets continue to run trial work on a variety of weaning weight and ages to fully understand how we can best feed newly weaned pigs and how to tailor to their needs. We encourage you to reach out to your Grand Valley Fortifiers or Fortified Nutrition sales rep determine the best way to maximize your operation’s weaning weight and age to feed these young animals in the most efficient way possible. At the end of the day, reduced gain can lead to lost dollars and extra dollars spent can leave money on the table so it is important to fully understand and utilize your starter feed choices. n

CONSIDERING YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

by: RICK FERNANDEZ Director of True Foods

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lthough there is a growing focus on Carbon Footprint in Canada in the past few years we are still behind Europe when it comes to focusing on carbon footprint in agriculture.

So, what is carbon footprint. And what does it mean? And how does it affect us? And why is it so important?

A carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an individual, event, organization, service, or product, expressed as carbon dioxide equivalent. GHGs, including the carbon-containing gases carbon dioxide and methane, can be emitted through the burning of fossil fuels, land clearance and the production and consumption of food, manufactured goods, materials, wood, roads, buildings, transportation and other services.

Swine Grist It is believed that the emission of GHGs is the main perpetrator of climate change. Livestock farmers, especially dairy and beef farmers, are no doubt growing in their concern about the level of responsibility that society is placing on them with regards to GHG emissions from their operations and their alleged impact on climate change. Various government and para-government organizations have attempted to quantify the GHG emissions from various sectors with the following global findings:

Of the calculated 24% attributed to Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (such as deforestation) farm emissions are said to be responsible for about 12% and livestock farming specifically about half of this number (68%) with swine production calculated at about 10% of this 6-8%. Therefore, assuming that these calculations are even somewhat accurate, pork production, still the most consumed meat in the world, may account for half to three quarters of 1% of the global GHG emissions.

At GVF, we believe that this is a good news story and even more than that, with most of Canada’s swine producers being land based, growing their own crops, and utilizing their pigs’ manure rather than synthetic fertilizers, the pork industry is well positioned to positively impact carbon sequestration, reduce GHG emissions and possibly find a new source of revenue for their farms in carbon credits.

Believing that an opportunity for pork producers may exist here, Grand Valley Fortifiers decided to research and investigate the carbon footprint of a kilogram of pork produced from various types of swine farms in Ontario.

We have been working with a UK company to initiate this research and have enrolled 7 pork producers on this pilot. We tested a mix of RWA, Organic and Commodity producers to see if there is any difference between the different type of producers.

From a producer perspective the carbon footprint modeling entails collecting herd specific details such as fuel, electricity, water, and feed usage.

Once data is collected and entered each producer will receive a report that will show: • The overall efficiency of their production system • Highlights of key areas that are contributing to poor efficiency • The impact of any changes they make year on year • The value of improvements into monetary terms/profitability Feed is the biggest contributor to carbon footprint emissions for a producer and there is a significant difference between on-farm-fed producers, who produce a smaller carbon footprint, and those who buy their feed.

While the sample size of our pilot survey is small there was no significant difference in carbon footprint for RWA and commodity producers although the one organic producer did have a higher carbon footprint due to space requirements of the organic program. The model we utilized breaks farrow to finish operations into two distinct operational phases (Farrow to Wean and Wean to Finish) in order to determine some ways that we can help producers reduce carbon footprint.

The best four ways to decrease carbon footprint in the farrow to wean barns are: • Maximize Piglets per Sow: Increased throughput with focus on genetics, health and barn management • Optimize Feed per Sow: Not necessarily less feed, but more efficient feed. Think sow feed per piglet and piglet weight produced.

• Minimize Piglets Days on Farm: Pay off between weaner weight and days spent on farm. The longer on farm the higher the footprint.

• Minimize Piglet Mortality: Increased efficiency by decreasing mortality rates and increasing pigs marketed per sow.

The four areas to focus on to reducing carbon footprint in the wean to finish barns are: • Maximize ADG: Linked to genetics, diet quality, and nutrient density.

• Optimize Feed per pig: Not less feed, but improved feed efficiency • Minimize Days on Farm: Due to worsening FCR as a hog grows in weight & age, the heavier the hog, the greater the footprint per kg of pork.

• Minimize Pig Mortality: Increased efficiency by decreasing mortality.

Although pork producers may view carbon footprint modeling as just another audit to help address a segment of the market’s social agenda, the reality is that the farms that are well run with great ADG and efficient feed conversion, record setting pigs per sow and low mortality also have a comparatively low carbon footprint per kg of pork produced. These farms are more efficient and therefore likely to be more profitable. As sustainability initiatives and trade requirements grow we believe these farms should capitalize on the great job that they are doing by modeling their carbon footprint per kg of pork that is produced in their efficient operation. This may help open up new markets with improved returns for their hogs. n

ONTARIO SWINE HEALTH UPDATE

by: DR. KEVIN VILACA South West Ontario Veterinary Services

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s we look back on 2020, we will always remember it for the devastating grip that COVID 19 had on our world, our families and our industry.

Not only was our industry plagued with slaughter limitations and fluctuating prices, but pig diseases also left their mark on our industry.

PRRS: With regards to PRRS, this will be a year that showed a significant rise in PRRS virus activity. For perspective, in our clinic in 2018 there were 73 PRRS cases identified, in 2019 there were 63 cases. In 2020 this shot up to 129 PRRS cases identified and in the first month of 2021 there have been 16. This is an alarming trend.

In recent years the most common strain of PRRS in Ontario has been designated by the RFLP ‘1-1-1’ and farms infected with this strain saw relatively mild signs. This clinical picture is not the case with the three next most common strains seen throughout Ontario in 2020 - ‘1-30-1’, ‘1-8-4’ and ‘1-3-1’ with honorable mention to ‘1-4-2’. With these strains, pigs weaned can drop to close to zero for a number of weeks during the outbreak; sow mortality increases; and the pigs weaned are challenging to raise, with high nursery and finisher losses and elevated medication costs.

What has made this year more severe than others is not clear. However, when having discussions with veterinarians in other regions of North America, they have also seen increases in the number and severity of PRRS cases.

Influenza:

With the increased use of regional influenza vaccine, we have seen a reduction in the number of cases and severity of Influenza. This is most evident in nursery pigs and sow/gilt stability on entrance to sow herds.

Influenza does however still continue to be a challenge in Ontario and is far

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from gone. As part of our regional influenza initiative, we continue ongoing monitoring and track viral changes as new cases present. The good news is that antigenic shift in the 5 primary influenza viruses has been minimal.

There is an observation that does concern us and that is the appearance of an antigenically different H3N2 virus that shows drift from H3N2 strains previously identified in Ontario. In late 2019 this virus was identified in one herd. As winter, progressed we found ourselves with 5 herds affected and the trend continued. Our internal sequence database showed this strain to be increasing in prevalence and so we submitted a request to CFIA to add this new strain into the updated Regional Vaccine. The request was recently approved after animal testing and the new updated 6 strain Regional Influenza Vaccine should be available this summer just ahead of the winter Influenza season.

Rotavirus:

When producers think of rotavirus they think of watery scours in gilt litters in the first few days of life. Good acclimation and bioexposure of gilts generally led to good control of this problem. It is not to say that this has changed, but instead we have added in some layers as we learn more about this virus. Rotavirus replicates and damages the lining of the intestine making the pig more susceptible to other intestinal bacteria. In the last few years, we have seen more severe influence of this virus on early nursery scour. To complicate it further, Rotavirus is made up of three distinct strains (A, B and C) and the commercial vaccine available only covers some strains of Rotavirus A. Last summer, an intern with our research division (SWARE) assessed the distribution, prevalence and severity of strains and found often more than one strain was involved in the cases assessed and different strains often impacted different stages of pig growth. This analysis has led to the development of a South West Rotavirus database that will assist us in characterizing the virus dynamics of your herds, improve our ability to make informed decisions on intervention and if necessary, develop a herd specific vaccine.

PED: PED is often the disease that is forgotten in recent years as we can go long stretches with very little activity. Then, as happened this past fall, there can be a cluster of breaks that come close together and we are reminded it has not been eliminated from the Ontario industry. It is critical to remember that this disease is still present in high risk places where pigs are collected like assembly yards and slaughter plants and we do get positive trailer trace backs from these locations. Just a reminder that PED could still be close to your loading chute doors and good biosecurity is your best course of action to keep it out of your barns.

If you have any questions on how these diseases or others influence your herd, please discuss with your herd veterinarian. n PROFIT FINDER MINIMIZE SORT LOSS AND MAXIMIZE PROFIT

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rofit Finder™ is a unique, graphical tool for hog producers available exclusively from Grand Valley Fortifiers and through Fortified Nutrition.

This management program has been created to help you easily compare

weights verses yields on your shipping grid and interpret how regularly you are hitting the mark! Many producers who have signed up for the Profit Finder™ reports are surprised by the number of dollars they are leaving on the table week by week.

Profit Finder™ utilizes shipping data obtained directly from your packer for the previous week’s hogs shipped. The information is presented in a dashboard-type, easy-to-interpret and timely report, showing you at-aglance how many pigs you are shipping in your shipping grid ‘sweet spot’.

Weekly reports are delivered directly to your inbox, thereby eliminating the need to log-in to find your information or sift through lines of complex grading data to see how well you are doing. We add notes for significant items such as reasons for condemned hogs, ridglings that are paid at a lower index, number of hogs not graded or identified patterns of pigs shipped outside the grid. Better understanding of your current shipping trends allows you to make adjustments on the next loads that are shipped to help increase the percentage of hogs in your grid’s ideal weight zone and maximize premium dollars that may be part of your contract. Breakdown of weekly shipments by tattoo number allows for feedback to any contract grower sites for positive reinforcement or targeted focus on weighing.

The last 27 weeks of shipments is also reported in visual form to monitor trends on number of hogs shipped, average weight, and loin as well as comparing parameters such as Yield vs. Fat; Loin vs. Fat and Yields vs.

Premium dollars.

Profit Finder™ currently has 141 barns and approximately 710,000 hogs in our database. Your individual data is confidential and will never be shared without your consent. Weekly reports will include anonymous combined summary information for all producers on the same grid for the last week and Year to Date basis allowing you to benchmark how you are doing versus your peers. We currently report on three grids but will add additional grids as required no matter where your hogs are slaughtered, including Quebec, Western Canada or the United States.

Benefits of Benchmarking:

• Gain an independent perspective about how well you perform compared to your peers • Drill down into performance gaps to identify areas for improvement.

• Develop a standardized set of processes and metrics.

• Enable a mindset and culture of continuous improvement.

• Set performance expectations.

Don’t leave revenue on the table! Take advantage of Profit Finder™ and capitalize on additional profits from the hogs you are already shipping.

With Profit Finder™, you can “minimize sort loss and maximize profit”. n

Thought for the Day Proverbs 27:23-26 Be sure you know the condition of your flocks,give careful attention to your herds; 24 for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations. 25 When the hay is removed and new growth appears and the grass from the hills is gathered in, 26 the lambs will provide you with clothing, and the goats with the price of a field.

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“Solomon was a hard worker and observed the folly of laziness. He discovered that the wisdom of hard work is the secret of success in every area of life, from family to government.”

– exerpt from God’s Wisdom for Daily Living