Analyzing Mycotoxin Levels in Swine Feed

carrie muehlingAgWired Animal, Alltech, Animal Agriculture, Audio, Pork, Swine, World Pork Expo

The results of the 2017 harvest analysis with regard to mycotoxin levels show that the 2017 crop was similar to the 2016 crop, and levels were possibly a bit less than in 2015.

Alltech‘s Dr. Max Hawkins said analysis is important as swine producers try to mitigate the risk of mycotoxin exposure in feed.

“We need to get an idea of what risk is present in the corn, present in the feed from mycotoxins,” said Hawkins, who was at the 2018 World Pork Expo. “Then once we know what that risk is, we can look at adjusting formulations, we can look at monitoring storage, and we can look at employing a more total mycotoxin management program to mitigate the most amount of risk possible to the pigs.”

Hawkins said one way to do that is with the Alltech RAPIREAD program, which provides not only the necessary testing, but also the ability to look at diet formulations and evaluate potential risk to the animals.

Listen to Jamie’s interview with Dr. Hawkins here: Interview with Dr. Max Hawkins, Alltech

2018 World Pork Expo Photo Album

Coverage of World Pork Expo is sponsored by World Pork Expo virtual newsroom sponsored by AlltechWorld Pork Expo virtual newsroom sponsored by showriteWorld Pork Expo virtual newsroom sponsored by hubbard

Senate Agriculture Committee Passes Farm Bill

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By a vote of 20 to 1, the Senate Agriculture Committee passed the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 Wednesday

“The Senate Agriculture Committee’s bipartisan Farm Bill process is a reminder of how things should work in Washington – listening to the folks back home, working through issues with the other side of the aisle, then writing a good bill,” said Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). “Today marks another important step in the road to getting an on-time Farm Bill enacted into law. We urge our colleagues to support this bill.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) was the sole dissenting vote, continuing his long-time crusade for payment limitations.

“Setting sound, enforceable limits to farm safety net payments is a straightforward way to exercise fiscal responsibility and close loopholes that exploit the intent of farm programs that allow some non-farmers to game the system and take resources away from real, working farmers,” said Grassley in a statement after the vote. “I’ve been an advocate for making these reforms for more than a decade, so you can imagine my disappointment that they weren’t included in the committee’s legislation. I intend to offer an amendment on the Senate floor to include commonsense payment limits in the 2018 Farm Bill.”

Grassley was the first to make his comments during the mark-up. Here are his remarks.
Sen. Grassley comments on Senate farm bill

Grassley also opposed including the Hemp Farming Act of 2018 sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) in the farm bill. The legislation to remove federal roadblocks to industrial hemp was included. “By securing my hemp provision in the Farm Bill, we are building upon the successes of the hemp pilot programs and encouraging the great potential of this versatile crop,” said McConnell.

Listen to McConnell’s comments here:
Sen. McConnell comments on hemp legislation in farm bill

Show-Rite on Site at World Pork Expo

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Show-Rite®, which is part of Hubbard Feeds family, provides nutrition programs formulated specifically for breeders and exhibitors who want their show animals to perform their very best.

Ryan Sites was at World Pork Expo last week as part of the technical support team for Show-Rite and had a chance to talk to many of those who were participating in the Junior Nationals. “This is a great avenue for us to explain a lot of the new products we have coming out,” said Sites. “We’ve got a couple new additive products coming out that look real promising from the trials we’ve done.”

Sites says Show-Rite® Show Feeds is dedicated to both providing great nutritional products for show animals and offering expert knowledge for their customers.

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Ryan Sites, Show-Rite

2018 World Pork Expo photo album

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Hubbard Showcases Blueprint Swine Program at #WPX18

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Success is often achieved by simply following the blueprint.

At last week’s World Pork Expo, Hubbard Feeds showcased its Blueprint® program for swine, a species-specific program to help producers identify ways to improve efficiency and maximize genetic performance.

“For pigs, we designed different sow, nursery, and finisher programs that include between six and 12 different Alltech technologies,” said Dr. Stewart Galloway, Senior Swine Nutritionist. “Our goal is to improve gut health, immunity in the pigs, milk production in sows, decreased death loss…and ultimately more pigs going to market at full value.”

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Dr. Stewart Galloway, Hubbard

2018 World Pork Expo photo album

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DuPont Opens Industrial Biosciences Global Headquarters

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DuPont Industrial Biosciences officially opened the doors of its renovated global business headquarters last week in Wilmington, Delaware.

“At this new facility, we have hundreds of people working toward a more sustainable future by innovating biobased solutions that are better, safer and more renewable. These technologies go into products that are used in everyday life,” said William Feehery, president of DuPont Industrial Biosciences. “The redesigned and upgraded laboratories and office spaces are incubators for some of DuPont’s most groundbreaking work.”

The revitalization of Building E353 is part of a more than $200 million investment in the Experimental Station campus, which began in 2016 and encompasses about 50 buildings, with over 2 million square feet of space.

Read more from DuPont.

Animal Ag Bites 6/11

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  • McDonald’s USA presented Cargill Protein’s Egg Team with the 2017 U.S. Supplier of the Year award at its Lake Odessa, Mich., and Mason City, Ia., egg processing facilities on Friday, June 1. As a McDonald’s supplier for nearly 25 years, Cargill was selected for the U.S. Supplier of the Year award for its leadership in supporting the launch and execution of McDonald’s “All Day Breakfast,” and pledging to supply 100 percent cage-free eggs for dedicated supply by 2025.
  • USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation have approved approximately $500,000 in funding for five new research grants at five institutions through the Board Research Initiative program. The research funding was approved by the boards of directors of both organizations, based on recommendations from the Foundation Research Advisory Committee. The committee evaluates research proposals to determine their value to the industry and then makes recommendations to the boards for funding.
  • U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has announced the appointment of six members to serve on the National Pork Board. More information about the board is available on the AMS National Pork Board webpage and on the National Pork Board website.
  • Missed a speaker or want to watch a replay of ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference? The Alltech Idea Lab gives you the chance to hear talks from the inspiring leaders and future thinkers from ONE18. Access to the Alltech Idea Lab is complimentary, requiring only registration. Plenary sessions are now available. Interactive focus sessions will be available for viewing on June 29. Sign up now at http://ideas.alltech.com.
  • Allflex Livestock Intelligence, an Antelliq brand, is pleased to introduce the SenseTime Beef cow monitoring solution. This new monitoring solution designed exclusively for beef cattle farms delivers actionable information on the reproduction, health, and wellbeing status of individual cows and groups. A smart and modular solution, SenseTime Beef supports both AI and natural breeding farms (cow-calf operations), for both penned and grazing cows.

Viligen™ is Alltech’s Newest Innovation for Pig Producers

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Alltech launched its latest technology for swine gut health at the recent ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference and producers got to learn more about Viligen™ at World Pork Expo this week.

Viligen™ focuses on enhancing gut form and function while optimizing the immune system to maintain health status. For producers with weaned pigs, Viligen promotes gut health by directly targeting the gut mucosa. When the technology is added to the diet of piglets, it prepares the immature gut for efficient nutrient absorption and rapid growth, and it encourages feed intake by providing fatty acids, prebiotic components and readily available mineral forms.

“So far, feedback from Viligen use on U.S. pig farms has been very positive,” said Russell Gilliam, Alltech U.S. swine business leader. “At Alltech, we understand that pig producers with weaned pigs are looking for technologies and solutions that lower production costs without compromising on performance.”

Read more about Viligen from Alltech and learn more in this interview with Gilliam from WPX: Interview with Russell Gilliam, Alltech, on Viligen

2018 World Pork Expo photo album

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Ibach Visits Pork Expo

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USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Greg Ibach addressed pork producers at a World Pork Expo luncheon Wednesday.

Topics Ibach addressed that are of particular interest to the pork industry included animal health, biotechnology, gene editing and trade issues. He also talked about farm bill negotiations and establishing a vaccine bank for livestock producers.

Listen to or download Ibach’s address: USDA Under Secretary Greg Ibach at 2018 World Pork Expo

2018 World Pork Expo photo album

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2018 CUTC is a Wrap

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The first Corn Utilization and Technology Conference was held 30 years ago. Since 1987, CUTC has brought together leading innovators to focus on new uses for corn with the goals of expanding markets and demand while improving quality and efficiency.

National Corn Growers Association CEO Chris Novak says this year’s conference this week was another great success for the future of the industry. “Corn can be at the forefront of a biobased economy,” said Novak. “We have the opportunity to use corn and corn products to replace petrochemicals in a way that will create additional demand for our farmers and create more sustainable products.”

Listen to Novak’s wrap up interview from CUTC: CUTC interview with NCGA CEO Chris Novak

2018 CUTC Photo Album

2018 World Pork Expo Showcases Everything Pig

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The 2018 World Pork Expo is celebrating 30 years this week at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines. Presented by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) since 1987, this year’s expo includes a record-setting trade show, expanded seminar lineup, elite swine shows, and an abundance of delicious pork!

Organizers expect approximately 20,000 producers, employees, industry specialists and other pork professionals, including 1,000 international visitors, to participate in Expo’s three days. From the beginning, Expo has featured the world’s largest pork-specific trade show, but this year, it’s even bigger. New to Expo, the Jacobson Exhibition Center (JEC) will join the Varied Industries building to display products, services and technologies from more than 500 U.S. and international companies.

Visitors also will find more outdoor exhibits throughout the fairgrounds. The Expo’s trade show exceeds 360,000 square feet this year, making it more than 40,000 square feet larger than in 2017.

Among the exhibitors is Alltech, and we will be finding out more about the nutritional technologies they offer to help pig producers overcome challenges to support pig health and producer profitability.

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