ISSUE FOCUS 40 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE December 2023 “Several ways exist to make pig farming more sustainable. One way can be to optimize the use of antimicrobials to reduce risks of antibiotic resistance. Another way can be to improve diet valorisation generally estimated in animals by the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR), to save raw materials and reduce manure amounts...” HOW TO MAKE SUSTAINABLE PIG PRODUCTION MORE PROFITABLE? Anne-Laure Ledoux Global Swine Category Manager Agrimprove PROFITABILITY IS A KEY SUCCESS FACTOR FOR SUSTAINABLE REARING OF PIGS Rearing livestock animals in a sustainable way is a necessary but continuously evolving process. Cost-efficient practices are permanently looked for, whether the objective is to comply with regulations, customer demand, or to improve welfare. However, sustainability must go along with equal or improved economical balance of the farm to be maintained over time. Several ways exist to make pig farming more sustainable. One way can be to optimize the use of antimicrobials to reduce risks of antibiotic resistance. Another way can be to improve diet valorisation generally estimated in animals by the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR), to save raw materials and reduce manure amounts. Doing better in at least one of these items will improve not only the sustainability of the farm, but will also generate savings in expenses for medication or feed. VITA GP IMPROVES PERFORMANCES IN VARIOUS SITUATIONS Vita GP contains a combination of medium chain fatty acids with proven strong antibacterial effects associated to a unique health fiber with bacteria binding and flushing capacities. It is a proven solution to fight Lawsonia intracellularis in growing and finishing pigs and the subsequent needs for antibiotic treatments e.g. Tylosin. The reduced antibiotic usages consequently increase the revenue per pig while contributing to lower risks of antibiotic resistance. More recently, Nuscience conducted series of trials investigating the contribution of Vita GP to the FCR in farms with good health status. In a trial involving > 500 pigs growing finishing pigs of comparable starting weight, Vita GP was fed at 2kg/T of feed in starter phase and 1kg/T of feed in growing and finishing phases. Numerically higher average daily weight gain (ADG) was observed despite comparable feed intake (FI), leading to a statistically significant reduction of FCR by -0.11 (p<0.05) in growing phase (Figure 1). This indicates that, in growing period, Vita GP protected digestive tract of pigs from reduced performances, despite no clear signs of stress or challenge. In a second trial involving again > 500 pigs, administration of Vita GP only during growing phase on top of another gut health functional feed ingredient
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