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Swine coronavirus replicates in human cells
New research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill suggests that a strain of coronavirus that has recently alarmed the swine industry may have the potential to spread to humans as well. The coronavirus strain, known as swine acute diarrhea syndrome coronavirus (SADS-CoV), emerged f...Read more -
The future of pig genetics
Over the past decade, the use of genomics in pig breeding has helped to accelerate genetic improvement and on-farm performance. “Genetics companies in general have made great strides over the years by making use of performance testing to govern breeding decisions,” says Jurgens Reynders, managing...Read more -
Technology and animal welfare improve piggery profits
CP Kriek and his wife Gerda swapped their industrial engineering careers for farm life in 2012 with the purchase of Bloubank Estates, the holding company for Taaibosch Piggery. “As engineers, we love challenges and taking things that aren’t working optimally and making them better,” says Kriek, w...Read more -
Small-scale pig farmer implements commercial practices
Buti Malinga, together with his sister, Cathy, started Vukani Piggery in 2008 with nine sows after they acquired the 154ha farm, Bronkhorstfontein, near Vanderbijlpark through the state’s land reform programme. The pair had, in fact, grown up on the same farm. Today, thanks to their hard work and...Read more -
Buffalo fly faces Dengue nemesis
Few beef producers in the temperate climate of southern Australia will have encountered the parasitic buffalo fly (Haematobia irritans exigua), a scourge of the cattle industry in the country’s tropical and subtropical north — but maintaining this state of affairs, and also lifting a ...Read more -
Technology Achieves A Healthy Animal Husbandry
From October 19 to 24. 2020, the 9th Forum On China Animal Husbandry Science and Technology was held in Rongchang, a city entitled “Land of Animal husbandry of China”. This forum is biennial since it started in 2004. As the highest level of event on China’s animal husbandry science and technology...Read more -
More Turnover and Consolidation Facing Pig Farmers
The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated trends in the pig business, says Brad Hennen, Ghent, Minnesota. Hennen finishes pigs for Lynch Livestock, as part of its antibiotic-free production system, and is a salesperson for breeding stock company Fast Genetics. He is seeing more turnover of farms t...Read more -
HOW AGRONOMY NEEDS TO DIFFER FOR DAIRY OPERATIONS
Have you ever considered yourself a dairy agronomist? While all producers who put seed in the ground want to grow the highest-yielding crops, there are nuanced differences that can ultimately affect what goes in the milk tank – and directly impact the bottom line. “Dairy agronomists have a thorou...Read more -
WHAT THE PORK INDUSTRY LEARNED FROM THE CORONAVIRUS DEBACLE
COVID-19 dealt a body blow to the pork industry. The year started with many of the largest pig producers expanding sow numbers to meet global demand opportunities. By April, restaurants were closing, packing plants shutting down, and pigs backing up on farms. Today, producers and other experts in...Read more -
Farm antibiotic sales continue to fall across Europe and United Kingdom
ales of antibiotics for use in farm animals are trending downwards in the UK and multiple EU countries. Farm animal antibiotic sales in Europe have fallen once again, with the UK being among the lowest user of antibiotics overall, according to new figures. Data from the 10th Annual Report from th...Read more -
Namibia’s FMD outbreak spreads
Namibia’s recent foot and mouth disease outbreak has spread from its northern region. According to reporting in Reuters, Namibia’s agriculture ministry announced the spread on 28 October. The disease, which does not affect humans but causes lesions and lameness in cattle and sheep, was first det...Read more -
Breeding a resistant and resilient Sussex stud herd
John Viedge of the Lehana’s Pass Sussex Stud run his animals on the farm Highfield, 10km south of Maclear in the Eastern Cape. The property consists of 2 200ha of very hilly terrain, at an altitude of 1 500m; average rainfall is 700mm with the occasional snowfall. Viedge is the second generation ...Read more -
Namibian livestock industry devastated by prolonged drought
Beef cattle sales in Namibia have fallen 31% so far this year compared with the same period in 2019, despite producer price increases of 2% for slaughter cattle and 39% for weaners. As a result, weaner exports declined 49% between January and August year-on-year, Namibia’s Meat Board reported rec...Read more -
Covid-19 creates perfect price forecasting storm
When Covid-19 first surfaced in early 2020, global protein markets were still responding to the pork shortages caused by African Swine Fever (ASF). The crisis has brought even further instability. Brett Stuart, President of Global Agri-Trends, explained Covid-19’s impact on global protein markets...Read more -
Ways to capture the marketing value on calves
When putting money in the stock market, there is nothing like the feeling of watching a return on investment grow. The same can be true when cattle producers are financially rewarded at the point of sale for their time and money invested in pre-conditioning calves. But as the experts at the Kansa...Read more -
UK dairy producer numbers down 4.7% on last year
The AHDB’s most recent survey of major milk buyers indicates a drop in UK dairy producers of almost 5% while milk volume per farm goes up. According to the October survey, there were an estimated 8,310 dairy producers in Great Britain. This is a reduction of 410 producers (4.7%) compared wi...Read more -
Dairy farms in The Netherlands will decrease by 33% by 2030
In the next ten years, the number of dairy farms in the Netherlands will decrease by 33%, from 16,000 in 2018 to approximately 10,600 in 2030. The total amount of milk produced will remain the same until 2024 and then increase slightly towards 2030. This is evident from a basic scenario of an exp...Read more -
Brazil recognizes 6 states as free from FMD without vaccination
The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa) published Normative Instruction No. 52, which recognizes the states of Acre, Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul and Rondônia as free from foot-and-mouth disease. Regions of Amazonas and Mato Grosso were also recognized. To carry out the health statu...Read more -
Researchers discover molecular link between diet and risk of colorectal cancer
An international team of researchers has identified a direct molecular link between meat and dairy diets and the development of antibodies in the blood that increase the chances of developing cancer. This connection may explain the high incidence of cancer among those who consume large amounts of...Read more -
PUBLIC HEALTH EXPERTS WARN OF POSSIBLE COVID-19 RESURGENCE AT FOOD PLANTS THIS FALL
Public health experts are concerned about a possible resurgence of COVID-19 in food production plants this fall. They say more comprehensive testing, physical distancing, and better data reporting are essential to keeping the virus in check, even as meatpackers insist that the worst of the pandem...Read more -
On-farm emissions reduced by proactive slurry management
Livestock farmers are being urged to have a comprehensive understanding of the environmental impact of slurry if the UK’s agricultural sector is going to be anywhere near reaching its net zero emissions target by 2040. Andrew Sincock, commercial director at Agriton UK explains that a proact...Read more -
Digital innovation could help pandemic-proof the UK’s dairy industry
Dairy farmers across the UK could benefit from a new project which aims to make the industry resilient to threats like COVID-19. The project, Smart-ET is funded by EIT Food and will develop digital tools working with farmers and dairy sellers to help them adapt their business models to rapid chan...Read more -
CATTLE GROUP PROPOSES MORE TRANSPARENCY IN MARKET PRICES
As an antidote for the dwindling cash market, the largest U.S. cattle group circulated a plan on Tuesday for meatpackers to voluntarily buy cattle on the spot market to assure fair and open prices, with the threat of mandatory disclosure if the systems fails. The so-called 75 percent plan by the ...Read more -
High Forage Diets 3 Things to Consider
The ambiguous title for this article is because the definition of high forage diets is vague and unique to different people. Technically speaking, a diet that is 50% forage or greater is a high forage diet – which could be considered low to normal for the Northeast part of the US, whereas t...Read more
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