Page 17 - Australian Pork Newspaper

2021 APSA Conference
November 15 – 18, 2021
Sofitel Brisbane, Australia (plus virtual)
Smart agri-systems for the pig industry
Professor Lisa Collins
The projected rise in the global human population and the anticipated increase in demand for meat and animal products, but with a greatly reduced environmental footprint, offers a difficult set of challenges to the livestock sector. How to produce more, but in a way that is healthier for the animals, for the public and for the environment? Implementing a smart agri-systems approach, utilising multi-platform precision technologies, internet of things, data analytics, machine learning, digital twinning and other emerging technologies can support a more informed decision-making and forecasting position that will allow us to move towards greater sustainability in future. Professor Collins will explore such opportunities and their barriers, using a case study of the National Pig Centre, a flagship pig research facility in the UK, to consider how a smart agri-systems approach could be used to consider alternative future systems for production and to monitor these systems in practice.
Professor Lisa Collins is Head of the School of Biology, Professor of Animal Science, N8 Agrifood Chair in Agricultural Systems, Director of the National Pig Centre, and Deputy Director of the Global Food and Environment Institute at the University of Leeds. Her research focusses on the development and application of smarter agricultural systems through multi- disciplinary approaches including technology development, systems modelling and data analytics.
The Five Domains model and promoting positive welfare in pigs
The Five Domains model is a prominent welfare assessment framework that facilitates the structured, systematic and comprehensive evaluation of animal welfare risks and opportunities for welfare enhancement. Dr Kells’ review will provide
an overview of the development of the Five Domains model and a description of the current model’s structure and its practical application to animal welfare assessment. Dr Kells offers an explanation of the scientific basis for inferring subjective affective experiences in animals and considers how the most recent iteration of the Five Domains model can be used to identify areas of potential welfare risk and opportunities for welfare enhancement in commercially farmed pigs.
Dr Nikki Kells is a Senior Lecturer in Animal Welfare in the Animal Welfare Science and Bioethics Centre at Massey University. She completed a Master of Science looking at gas alternatives to carbon dioxide for on-farm euthanasia of pre- weaned piglets, and a PhD investigating acute and chronic pain associated with tail docking of piglets, along with strategies to mitigate this. Dr Kells’ current research interests include evaluation of affective states in animals using electrophysiological and behavioural paradigms, improved techniques for humane slaughter and killing of farm and companion animals, development of prolonged acting analgesia for animal husbandry, and development of welfare assessment tools for farmed animals.
Dr Nikki Kells
What have we learned about the effects of heat stress on the Australian pig industry
The projected rise in the global human population and the anticipated increase in demand for meat and animal products,
but pig production faces seasonal fluctuations. The low farrowing rate of sows mated in summer, increased carcass fatness
of progeny born to the sows mated in summer and slower growth rate of finisher pigs in summer are three economically important impacts identified in the pig industry. Dr Liu’s review will examine advances over the past decade in understanding the mechanisms underlying the three impacts associated with summer conditions, particularly heat stress, and provide possible amelioration strategies. Ultimately, a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms and continuous investment in developing commercially viable strategies to combat heat stress will benefit the pig industry.
Dr Fan Liu is a Research Scientist at Rivalea Australia. As an industry-based researcher, Dr Liu conducts a broad range
of research to improve production efficiency in the Australian pig industry, with a focus on mitigating negative impacts of summer conditions in pig production. Before joining in Rivalea, Dr Liu completed his PhD on developing nutritional strategies to reduce heat stress in pigs at the University of Melbourne, and his Bachelor and Masters degrees at Nanjing Agricultural University, China.
Dr Fan Liu
What will we feed our pigs - heat stress impacts on crop production
Professor Richard Trethowan
Climate change may impact the distribution and productivity of traditional Australian cereal and pulse crops, with implications for the diets of pigs. C4 summer crops such as sorghum and millet may replace or augment wheat, barley and pulses in diets as temperatures rise and the incidence of drought increases. Such changes will have implications for pig nutrition as heat stressed grains and the grains of better adapted crop options may be less nutritious. Professor Trethowan will explore how improved agronomic management will continue to lessen the impacts of a more hostile production environment and the opportunities
for genetic improvement of heat tolerance of traditional cereals and pulses. Ultimately, optimisation of cultivar x environment x crop management interactions will slow changes in crop distribution due to climate change and will lessen these impacts on pig diets.
Richard Trethowan is Professor of Plant Breeding and Director of the Plant Breeding Institute at the University of Sydney. He has 33 years of experience breeding crops with tolerance to abiotic stresses both internationally and in Australia. His research interests include the development of new plant breeding technologies, enhancement of high-temperature tolerance of cereal and leguminous crops and development of grain crops with enhanced nutritional value.
www.porknews.com.au Australian Pork Newspaper, October 2021 – Page 17