A technical consultant at Elanco, an animal pharmaceutical company, has said that more than 80% of the costs on pig units relates to feed.
Pig producers are being urged to work closely with nutritionists to look at more flexible feeding strategies as high feed prices continue to cause challenges, said consultant Agustuna Rodriguez.
She said that cashflow problems may have eased slightly as the farmgate price per kilo has increased, but that pig producers are still in a loss-making position.
“Feed has always made up the largest share of outgoings on pig farms, however this has risen by over 10% in recent months and it now contributes to more than 80% of costs,” she said.
“To mitigate this, producers and their advisers need to take a flexible approach towards nutritional strategies, looking to alternative options where possible, while still meeting the pigs’ needs.
Rodriguez said that formulating rations as tightly as possible, collaborative working between producers, vets and nutritionists and optimising feed conversion ratio (FCR) are all important.
“However, even if all these areas are optimised, if the pig’s gut isn’t working properly, then it won’t be utilising feed as efficiently as it could be,” she said.
“Poor gut health can lead to loose stools and a proportion of nutrients being bypassed through the animal, meaning nutrient absorption is reduced.
“Any changes to the diet should offer a return on investment, whether that’s an improvement in gut health, FCR, growth or potentially a reduction in antibiotic use.”
