PIG Releases Biosecurity Videos for Alternative Pork Production

February 18, 2020 — 

Alternative pork production presents unique challenges for biosecurity. Niche, pasture pork, hoop barns, traditional pork or heritage breeds, are just a few examples of the alternative production methods highlighted in three new videos recently added to the Pork Information Gateway (PIG). [Source: Farm Journal's Pork, 11 Feb 2020, by Jennifer Shike]

These videos, designed to aid producers who focus on raising pigs using alternative methods of production, focus on biosecurity and sourcing feed.

"The Pork Information Gateway offers extensive resources for producers, educators, Extension staff and even students," said Beverly Durgan, director of Extension at the University of Minnesota and U.S. Pork Center of Excellence (USPCE) board of director chairman in a release. "The new videos are the perfect addition to the online library, especially at a time when producers are strengthening their biosecurity and sourcing their feed more strictly."

The new videos are:

• Alternative Pork Production: How Diseases can be Transferred to the Farm, authored by Dave Stender and Kristin Olsen, Iowa State University.
• Alternative Pork Production: Keeping Disease off the Farm, authored by Stender and Olsen.
• Sourcing Feed for Alternative Production Systems, authored by Jonathan Holt, North Carolina State University.

"The biosecurity videos demonstrate how important such things as a line of separation are," Chelsey Van Genderen, USPCE program manager, said in a release. "The other video depicts what a producer should look for when sourcing the ingredients for their feed. Understanding the importance in these areas can help make producers better caretakers of their pigs."

Additionally, the Pork Checkoff recently updated its webpage, Alternative Pork Production, for producers seeking direct information on education, research and promotions applicable to their production system.

The videos were completed in partnership with North Carolina State University and Iowa State University and funded by the USPCE. PIG, which is managed by the USPCE, is a free online resource library for producers, educators, industry professionals and youth.