Increasing U.S. Pork Producers’ Profits by Improving Pig Survivability
An estimated 30 to 35% of commercial pigs die before reaching the market, creating significant economic losses for farmers and presenting a major challenge to animal wellbeing and sustainability. Historically, reducing mortality has been difficult to achieve due to insufficient knowledge of the underlying causes of death and lack of proven and effective adoption and implementation strategies to prevent these deaths. The project seeks a full understanding of the biological mechanisms that limit pig and sow survivability, how they interact and how they can be effectively improved. It also includes the development and dissemination of strategies and information that can be used to maximize pig survivability. The project’s goal is to reduce overall mortality nationally by 1% or more per year over the five-year study. Increasing the wean-to-finish survival of animals by 1% would represent an estimated gain in productivity of approximately 1.2 million pigs a year for the nation’s swine industry.
Lowering Mortality Rates Can Improve Profitability & Improve Animal Welfare
While this is a clear animal welfare problem, it is also one of the most important productivity and economic issue for producers. Profitable pig production depends on producing pigs to market, with costs below market price. Lowering mortality rates can improve potential profitability. However, experienced pig producers know that mortality is a cost by its very nature and by efforts to reduce it.