Algae, ASF and acidifiers in latest edition of Pig Progress

This month’s cover picture shows a close up of the Ulva lactuca, or sea lettuce. This type of algae is good for animal nutrition products, and at feed additives producer Olmix they know all about that. In an interesting article author Marie Gallissot explains why applying green algae into feeding for grow-finishing pigs enhances the feed conversion and digestibility, page 30.

Health issues: ASF and antibiotic resistance

When publishing an issue with a focus on health and diseases, there has to be for African Swine Fever. The article on pages 28-29 dives into the composition of viruses and how they behave when being confronted with disinfectants. As ASFv is a so-called ‘enveloped virus’, it is possible to know how the virus will respond to disinfectants. Franck Foulon, Huvepharma, explains more.

Where health and nutrition meet – the gut – a common theme often is how to reduce the dependence on antibiotics. Lesley Nernberg of Biomin knows that acidifiers are a piece of the puzzle how to overcome the antimicrobial resistance puzzle – how exactly can be read on pages 33-35.

Pig farm visit from Canada

This month’s farm visit takes readers to Ontario, Canada, where correspondent Lilian Schaer visited the Van Raay farms on the shores of Lake Huron. About 10 years ago, when market conditions were unfavourable, the owners felt tempted to just stop. Just in time they realised that doing things differently was also an option – and with success. Read the feature on pages 24-25.

The on-farm store. Photo: Van Raay Farms/ The Whole Pig

Jubilee interview with Dr Eckel’s founders

Some other people who know everything about ‘change’ are Dr Antje and Dr Bernhard Eckel, who founded the feed additives company Dr Eckel 25 years ago. At the eve of the jubilee, Pig Progress editor Vincent ter Beek travelled to Germany to learn about the changed market and noticed how the company grew out from being a niche company to a global player. Pages 18-20.

Columns, reviews and a country focus

That is not all! This issue has another good few articles to read, like:

• Straw or no straw? That’s the question (page 8)
• Column on immunity (page 11)
• A close encounter with Iceland’s swine business (page 12),
• Benchmarking pig countries (page 15)
• A look back to SPACE in France (pages 22 and 41)
• Why healthy farms are sustainable (page 37)
• A look back at the Pig Progress webinar ‘No Antibiotics Ever’ (page 40); and
• Column on the pig industry being ‘on the move’ (page 42)