André van Lankveld, swine technical manager, Biomin GmbH (Austria)

Fluctuation of grain and pork market strongly influences the profitability of pig production business. The most critical situation is when feeds are expensive but the price of a kilo of live weight is low. However, even then a pig farm can gain money. The lower the feed conversion ratio is, the bigger the profits are. On what the feed conversion ratio depends and what way make it better read further in the article.

Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) is above all an economical factor. According to estimation of GTE NE Bretagn, reducing of FCR by 0,1 increased producers’ profits by 1,7€ per 100 kg of slaughter weight. In 2012, in Denmark they determined the economical production figures. Having analyzed Danish farms with this performance measures, they found out that 25% of the best enterprises earn 5,4 € more per pig than average farms. Moreover, 57% of this sum, h. e. 3,06 €, is due to better FCR. By the way, in 2012 the average FCR in Denmark was 2,78, in Ukraine — 5,19. Only imagine how much more our farmers could have earned!

Need we focus on the maximum growth?

Recently there has been developing a tendency to slaughter heavier pigs as one of the means to make production cheaper. Although from the point of view of FCR, there is something to put on considering cap. Week by week FCR of finishing pigs is getting worse and worse. So to feed pigs is more and more expensive.

Breed and genetics

To prove that genetics influences FCR a trial was carried in Germany. The sows of different genetic lines (hybrids of Large White and Landrace) — DanBred (Dan-Hybrid), JSR (Gena 90), Topigs (Topigs20) i PIC (Camborough 23) were inseminated with the semen of Pietrain boar (PIC). When the pigs went to the finishing house, their performance was monitored. After slaughter their carcasses were analysed.

Sex

Feed intake and FRC is very different depending on gender. This is shown by the results of scientific research Wageningen University in cooperation with specialists Cargill animal nutrition (2011), the object of which 128 were hybrids (four in each group, eight repetitions) obtained by mating of sows and boars Topigs 20 Peitrain breed. Experiment lasted 123 days after feeding (age piglets approximately 70 days).

1. How income depends on growth of the specific indicators??

2. What is MM-Maxpigs and how it depends on the feeding?

3. What breed has the best production perfomance and why?

4. How to improve the FCR in all pig species?

5. Why is the health status of pigs important?

6. What are the best feeding technology to increase or decrease the FCR?

You can find answers for these and other questions in the full version of the article in the magazine «Profitable Pig Production», № 6 (18) 2013.