On-farm trials of a new feeding process have shown it is possible to improve profitability in finisher pigs simply by changing the way feed diets are delivered to feeders.

Weaning is a problematic time for pigs, especially in intensive production. A radical solution has been found by using a lectin obtained from the red kidney bean plant (Phaseolus vulgaris). The technique should have major cost benefits for pig producers.

Pig feed imported by 16 companies in Malasyia will be tested for beta-agonist, a banned growth enhancer injurious to health. According to Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek, this would be carried out by his ministry’s pharmaceutical division.

Feeding a high fat diet during the first half of the gestation period and a diet high in starch and fat in the second half of the gestation period reduces the mortality rate in piglets, according to research done by Schothorst Feed Research in Lelystad, the Netherlands.

The pork industry is continually seeking alternative ingredients for use in pig diets, either as a means of diversifying rations -and thus reducing cost- or to achieve a final pork product that meets certain specifications. Lentils and flaxseeds are among these ingredients, according to experiments done by the Prairie Swine Centre.

Researchers at the Prairie Swine Centre in Canada will examine the environmental benefits of using Ractopamine used to improve the growth performance of grower and finisher pigs.

The UK pig industry could save over £40m per year by making a small improvement to feed conversion, according to Stephen Curtis, who was speaking at an ACMC Ltd conference in Yorkshire. "Increased costs, mainly on the back of higher world energy prices, are going to hit our industry hard, whether we like it or not" he said.

The search for ways to promote growth of farm animals without adding antibiotics to feed has led scientists in Taiwan to an advance toward genetically engineering animals that produce higher levels of a natural growth-promoting protein in their milk.

Ractopamine is used by farmers in other countries to promote the growth of lean pork, but local officials are determined to stamp out its use in Taiwan.