Wrapping up November: What’s new in the world of pigs?
Covid-19 does not stop companies to have serious building plans. In Illinois, the world’s largest insect protein plant will be built, for use in swine and poultry rations. Cargill is opening new plants in China. Here is a recap what happened in the swine business in November 2020.
ADM and InnovaFeed plan world’s largest insect protein plant
US grain processor ADM and French biotech company InnovaFeed have unveiled plans to build the world’s largest insect protein plant in Illinois in the US. The plant is set to produce 60,000 tonnes of animal feed protein yearly from the nutritious black soldier fly, along with 20,000 tonnes of oils for swine and poultry rations and 400,000 tonnes of fertiliser. The construction of the facility is planned for next year, pending approvals and permits.
Meanwhile, ADM launched its premix and nutrition services brand Wisium into eastern Canada, benefitting customers in Quebec, Ontario and Maritimes. For the hog business, Wisium provides Feet Up, which is a nutritional approach for sows, as well as a litter conditioner Purlite and Near Infrared Technologies.
Animine involved in project on zinc oxide
Animine has launched the ZinCoSupp R&D project. This name stands for the suppression of pharmacological zinc oxide but also for supplementation of the right zinc oxide source and dosage. The project brings together several universities to drive several PhD thesis projects to clarify the modes of action of zinc oxide.
Evonik launches MyAmino digital portal
Evonik has expanded its service offering for animal nutrition customers with a new digital portal, ’MyAmino’, the first digital point of contact for customers. In addition to 2 online stores, the portal offers customers access to products, services, information, training, contacts, partners, and order management for Animal Nutrition.
Cargill China opening another premix plant
Cargill in China is scheduled to open a flagship premix plant in Yichun, Jiangxi province, following the launch of a 300,000-tonne compound feed mill in Langfang, Hebei, in October. The company is now close to capacity as sales more than doubled this year with demand for premium feed reportedly exceeding supply.
Barentz acquires emulsifier specialist Sevecom
Barentz has acquired Sevecom, a specialist in emulsifiers with their own developed and patented solutions for animal nutrition. Headquartered in Milan, Italy, the company has a prominent home-market position.
Hamlet Protein and Trouw host seminar in China
Hamlet Protein, in collaboration with the US Soybean Export Council (USSEC) and Trouw Nutrition, hosted a seminar in Zhengzhou, China, to discuss antibiotic growth promoter free farming, innovation and nutrition. A total of 130 participants attended to hear the speakers share their knowledge and insights.
PerformaNat to launch piglet health product
Berlin, Germany-based start-up PerformaNat is about to launch a new animal health product for pigs, initially in Europe. The feed product, a mixture of phytogenic compounds, is a pig adaptation of an earlier product preventing hypocalcaemia in dairy cows. The aim is to improve piglet health after weaning through a targeted modulation of ion channels, which increases the epithelial absorption capacity of nutrients in the gut. Scientific articles will be published shortly.
Weda adding new air conditioning series to portfolio
Germany’s pig housing company Weda Dammann & Westerkamp is able to offer a new technology for optimising the climate in livestock houses, having taken over the air-conditioning product series Veco.Mate from Alcona, located in North Rhine Westphalia, Germany. Other products in the series include alarm systems and power supply units for operating of flaps and drives in the barn.
Zoetis resumes sales of Suvaxyn PRRS MLV vaccine
Animal healht company Zoetis has welcomed the decision from the Danish Veterinary and Food Authority to lift the suspension of the use of Suvaxyn PRRS MLV (modified live virus) vaccine. Sales and marketing activities for the product will resume in Denmark.
Needle-free injection device developed for pigs
Henke-Sass, Wolf, has partnered with Boehringer Ingelheim to develop an intramuscular needle-free vaccine injection tool for pigs around weaning until the end of nursery. This device will be globally available in December 2020 under 2 different brands, Epig (Henke-Sass, Wolf), and FreVax (Boehringer Ingelheim). The devices are aimed to replace needle vaccination, ensuring smooth intramuscular injections of 1 or 2 ml and direct feedback through sensors and LED alerts.
Canarm boot wash to improve farm biosecurity
Canarm Ag Systems recently launched a new boot wash. The unit is made from stainless steel with 4 high-pressure nozzles for fast, effective boot cleaning. The product is easy to install and service and fits all boot sizes.
Nucleus exports purebred pigs to China…
Early November, genetics company Nucleus exported 2,000 purebred animals to China, in 2 aircrafts with 1,000 head each. An additional 2 planes are planned to be sent by late December. By the end of 2020, the company will then have sent in total 6,500 head to 2 customers in China. Another 300 purebred animals went to Thailand.
…and so does Choice
And more pigs travelled to China, as also pig genetics company Choice sent a shipment of breeding stock to their Chinese customers. Late November, the company reported that the animals had departed from Paris, France.
Mexico’s Kowi Group: More Topigs Norsvin genetics
Mexico’s Grupo Kowi will expand its share of Topigs Norsvin genetics in its pig production systems. Over the next 2 years, the volume of Topigs Norsvin genetics – a combination TN70 sow and Norsvin Duroc terminal boar – will grow to a majority share in the company’s production pyramid.
Meanwhile, recent farm data from an independent statistical organisation, Ingris, in Norway, shows that the number of liveborn piglets born per litter has improved by 1.1 in the last 4 years (2015-2019), and that the number of weaned piglets has also improved 1.1, and pre-weaning mortality reduced.
In other news from Topigs Norsvin, the Centre for Improvement of Animal Breeding has become the distributor for Topigs Norsvin genetics in Ukraine.
Intelligent data solutions for farmers and agribusinesses
Dutch data company Agrovision and Danish monitoring company IQinabox have teamed up to bring intelligent big data solutions to livestock producers. By combining specialised software with data modelling and analysis, data can be transformed into insights. Thomas Nejsum Madsen, IQinabox CEO, says the solution is based on “insight into the biology of growing pigs and deep knowledge of the wants and needs of the pig industry.”
Anifera launched to curb antibiotics in animals
Stonehaven Incubate and Agile Sciences have launched Anifera, a new company that will manufacture, develop and commercialise a family of molecules in all applications in animal health. The agilyte family of compounds, which have been modified from a naturally occurring molecule found in a marine sponge, disable bacterial protection mechanisms for enhanced antibiotic activity.
