BPEX Weekly: June 04 2010

2TS Tip of the Week

Now is the time to start organising holiday cover and work shadowing, ready for the summer holidays. Remember to ensure that work instructions are to hand for relief staff. Template work instructions can be downloaded from the BPEX website.

KT team in Action

During 2009-2010 the specialised Knowledge Transfer (KT) Team has continued to transfer best practice ideas to the whole industry, assisting individual businesses and the whole sector to enhance profitability and competitiveness.

The team has been working through discussion groups, BPEX workshops, training and on a one-to-one basis with individual producers and organisations.

Some examples where KT input has been successful in delivering performance benefits to commercial pig units can be found in the BPEX Annual Technical Report, along with summaries of a number of their other activities.

The team members have a pivotal role to play in developing the 2TS campaign and helping producers improve their productivity.

To contact one of the KT team or to request a copy of the annual report, email kt@bpex.org.uk or call 0247 647 8793.

Stimulate Breeding Performance

The first pillar of the two-tonne sow project is breeding and Janssen Animal Health recently introduced Maprelin® solution for injection, which stimulates oestrus in gilts and sows, shortens weaning to oestrus interval and can improve reproductive performance throughout the breeding herd. Click here to read the full article.

Marketing News

Business Conference

The conference themed ‘Profit in Recovery’ is to be held at the Coventry Transport Museum. 

A one day business conference hosted by the NFMFT has free admission to any food related business. There are four subjects being covered by representatives from the following:

• Coventry University – Marketing
•  Secatour – Finance
• ACAS – Human Resources
• Coventry City Council - Regulation

Click here for more information.

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Girls Guide to Grilling

Kate Walsh, TV Presenter, conducted over 20 regional radio interviews today, promoting the start of the Love Summer Love Pork campaign. 

Kicking off with the Girls Guide to Grilling, named as such because the Girls will be able to get near the BBQ, as the men will be too busy watching the World Cup next week!

Hosted on the lovepork website, alongside six fabulous new BBQ recipes, the guide highlights in eight easy top tips how to have a Brilliant BBQ this summer. 

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The website now has 27 brands currently signed up to the Code of Practice for the clearer labelling of pork and pork products. 

The Code was drawn up to provide the pig meat supply chain with a set of guidelines to help them produce clear, consistent and unambiguous labelling on all pork and pork products. It calls for the country of origin of the pork used in pork products to be clearly displayed.

Organisations signing up to the Code of Practice will be able to provide consumers with clarity and even greater confidence in the pork products they purchase.  For a copy of the code click here.

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Knowledge Transfer

Eastern Pig Health Meetings

Producers are now signing up to Eastern Pig Health (EPH) on the brand new web site www.pighealth.org.uk.

Veterinary practices are also hosting meetings to provide further information on the EPH scheme, with light refreshments included.

For more information and to reserve a place(s) please contact Ross Lake 07792 681203 or ross.lake@bpex.org.uk.

16th June: Acorn House Veterinary Practice, St Neots area

24th June: Oakwood Veterinary Group, Scole area

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Gilt Management Workshop

Come along to a gilt management night with benchmarking of performance and best practice between farms.

Lis Ravn will be running the workshop at The Angel Inn, Topcliffe, Thirsk on 16th June, starting at 18:00.

To find out more call Lis on 07891 656784 or email Lisbeth.ravn@bpex.org.uk.

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National News:

Pig Health Survey

Vital information about pig health status across Yorkshire is now available. A total of 375 pig producers have been surveyed to date by veterinary surgeons as part of the Yorkshire and Humberside Health (YHH) programme.

Of these, 233 were declared to be in production and almost all of them gave their veterinary surgeon permission to record whether or not four important diseases were present on their units.

Enzootic pneumonia (EP) was present on 141 of the units and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) was present on 136. Swine dysentery was recorded on 11 units and mange was recorded on eight units.

BPEX Health Co-ordinator Helen Clarke said: “The pig units surveyed so far represent more than 28,000 sows and more than 206,000 finishing places, covering a mixture of weaner producers, breed to finish and finishing units. So the data gives us a good indication of disease prevalence across the region.

“The enthusiasm, co-operation and willingness of producers to share health status information is very encouraging. More information is being gathered as new producers sign up to YHH and take part in the survey. More results from the vet survey will be available on the YHH web pages, accessed by clicking on the map at www.pighealth.org.uk.  

Producers who would like biosecurity advice and help forming cluster groups with their neighbours should call Helen Clarke on 07973 701369 or email her at helen.clarke@bpex.org.uk.

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Latest BPHS Dates

Below are the latest BPHS assessment dates.

Assessment dates for January to June 2010 in all participating abattoirs have been published and are available on the BPEX website.

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Since the early part of the decade it has been a statutory requirement to provide pigs with “manipulable material” as a way of providing environmental enrichment. The aim is to avoid pigs damaging each other in the form of flank, ear and tail biting, based on the assumption that these ‘vices’ result from boredom.

Vice is a highly complex condition associated with environment, social, nutritional, genetic and health factors, all of which can trigger problems and as such all must be addressed.  Notwithstanding the complexity, docking of tails remains the most reliable method of preventing this distressing damage of tail biting.

Building on the legislation, it is now specified in QA standards that “chains alone are not acceptable” as environmental enrichment It is necessary to add either some form of plastic chewable material (that will not cause harm to pigs or to the slurry pumps) or organic material. In all cases to maintain disease control, the material must either be replaced or thoroughly cleaned and disinfected between groups.

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This year, the pig industry's most prestigious accolade, the David Black Award, celebrates its Golden Jubilee and the hunt is now on for somebody to receive the honour.
The pig industry has seen some very challenging times and through the difficulties many people have worked doggedly, giving their all for the benefit of the industry.
One of those people, who has made a valuable and sustained contribution to the industry, is in line to be the recipient of the award.
Everybody in the pig industry is eligible to win, no matter which sector they are from.
Previous winners have included consultants, allied industry, processors, producers and even the Pig Health Control Association. The final selection will be made by a panel of independent judges chaired by BPEX Director, Mick Sloyan.
Mick Said: "Many people have made a significant contribution over the years and all deserve recognition.
"In the past, winners have been people who thought there were others better qualified than they to receive it, though their peers knew better.
"There are still many out there who richly deserve this award and we want their names to be put forward for consideration by the judges."
Further information including past winners and nomination forms are available on the BPEX website, or by contacting BPEX on 02476 478790. The closing date for nominations is Friday, August 27.

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UK pig producers, already losing up to £6 a pig on worm-infested units, could be blasting a hole, knocking millions of pounds off industry profits this year if they fail to reduce worm burdens, according to an article by Janssen Animal Health.

This shock finding, which comes as producers are being urged to achieve two tonnes of pigmeat output per sow, is contained in a research study by a team of Danish and US pig scientists.

This shows that worm infections in a pig herd can adversely affect the efficacy of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae vaccines. And, like other nations’ pig industries, most UK herds are likely to have worm infections. Click here to read the full article.

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Slap marker producer Id & Trace has, in association with Cranswick plc, developed the only totally food grade slapper tattoo ink available.

It  conforms to all appropriate meat and hygiene regulations 2010. For more information, contact www.idandtrace.com

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PLANS for a new independent animal health body in England have been put on hold by the coalition Government and could eventually be dropped.
The new administration stated its commitment to the principle of sharing responsibility for animal disease in last week’s ‘programme for government’.
However, Ministers have made it clear they want to formulate their own plans in their own time.
The indications from Defra are that Ministers have no intention of proceeding with the Bill, while there are no plans ‘at present’ for an ‘animal/horse tax’, as proposed by Defra in 2009.
Instead, Defra Ministers will wait until Rosemary Radcliffe’s stakeholder group, which has been developing proposals for sharing animal health responsibility, reports later this year before making any firm decisions.
Defra Ministers and officials will also be working with the Treasury on the cost sharing side of the equation.
The coalition might be reluctant to set up a brand new animal health body in England, as this would appear to go against its aim of reducing the number of public bodies in existence.
Some farming organisations, including the NFU and Country Land and Business Association, have been arguing in favour of setting up the new body.
The NFU has warned that future cost sharing plans could dig deep if Defra is saddled with big budget cuts under the next Spending Review, with areas like cattle passports and animal disease compensation up for discussions.

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If you are going to Cereals, pay a visit to BQP who will be on the Openfields stand, number 603, to find out more the firm's supply chain initiatives..

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Pig Health Scheme Boost

Pig producers have wasted no time in signing up to improve pig health in East Anglia. Now, in a further boost to progress for the Eastern Pig Health (EPH) scheme, a brand new website provides a single port of call for producers to get information and join up: www.pighealth.org.uk.

Producers are working together on a plan to improve long-term health and biosecurity on their units by sharing information with others in the scheme.

Everyone who signs up to EPH will benefit from access to an online map of pig units and herd health status information, free diagnostic testing, improved biosecurity, online management tools and disease alerts.

EPH Steering Group Chairman Philip Richardson said: “It’s an exciting position to be in. We’re seeing greater transparency between producers than ever before. The first producers to sign up have agreed it has to be ‘all or nothing’ and are willing to give full disclosure of health status on their units to other members of Eastern Pig Health.”

There are four initial steps for producers and their vets.

1. The producer registers online at www.pighealth.org.uk and agrees terms and conditions
2. The producer signs a disclosure form giving permission for their vet to disclose disease status to EPH
3. Their vet assesses their unit using a standard protocol, usually combined with a quarterly visit and enters health status details on the EPH website (EPH subsidises the additional veterinary cost).
4. The producer has full access to a map of all signed-up producers, disease status information and EPH support services.

For those without internet access and to discuss the project further, please contact Eastern Pig Health Co-ordinator Ross Lake by calling 07792 681203 or emailing ross.lake@bpex.org.uk. An information pack including the registration documents can be posted to producers.

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International News:

UN Says Eat Less Meat

The United Nations' Environment Programme (UNEP) is renewing the call for consumers to eat less meat as part of efforts to stem global warming.

UNEP's International Panel for Sustainable Resource Management is due to release a report, "Environmental Impacts of Consumption and Production: Priority Products and Materials," in conjunction with the European Commission, a UNEP partner, in Brussels.

The report notes that "Current patterns of production and consumption of both fossil fuels and food are draining freshwater supplies; triggering losses of economically important ecosystems such as forests; intensifying disease and death rates and raising levels of pollution to unsustainable levels," according to materials posted on UNEP's Web site.

"Perhaps controversially, [the report] … calls for a significant shift in diets away from animal-based proteins toward more vegetable-based foods in order to dramatically reduce pressures on the environment," UNEP says in a news release.

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EFSA has just published an evaluation of factors that may contribute to the spread of MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) in pig holdings in the European Union, following on from the publication of the first EU-wide survey on the occurrence of this bacterium in pigs.

EFSA's survey shows that bigger pig holdings are more likely to be contaminated with MRSA. This was found to be the case for both breeding and production holdings. As an example, the study says that a breeding holding with more than 400 breeding pigs is twice more likely to be contaminated with MRSA compared to one with less than 100 breeding pigs.

In addition, the risks of breeding holdings and production holdings being contaminated with MRSA varied significantly between countries even when accounting for the effect of the holding size. EFSA's analysis highlights that animal movement may play a role in the contamination of breeding pigs' holdings with MRSA: both through the trade of breeding pigs between Member States and the movements of pigs between breeding and production holdings within the same Member State.

EFSA recommends that more information is gathered at national level on those factors that put pig holdings at risk of infection with MRSA and on the measures that can prevent its spread.

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Easier GM Approval

The European Union is to radically overhaul its approval system for genetically modified (GM) crops from next month, opening the way to large-scale GM cultivation in Europe, EU sources said on Friday.

With most Europeans showing no appetite for GM produce in food, EU politicians have approved just two varieties for growing in 12 years, compared to more than 150 worldwide.

Under proposals due to be adopted on 13 July, the EU executive Commission will be given greater freedom to approve new GM varieties for cultivation in return for letting EU governments decide whether or not to grow them.

"The idea is to maintain an EU-level approval system, but then leave member states totally free to decide whether or not they want to grow," an EU source familiar with the proposals told Reuters.

Commercial GM planting in Europe last year covered less than 100,000 hectares, mostly in Spain, compared to 134 million hectares globally.

The plan would allow large-scale commercial planting in pro-GM countries such as Spain, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, while legally endorsing existing GM bans in countries including Italy, Austria and Hungary.

But critics say the proposals could spark internal market disputes within Europe, and leave the EU open to legal challenges in the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which largely backed a U.S. complaint in 2006 that the EU's GM policy was unscientific.

The new rules were drawn up by Maltese Health and Consumer Affairs Commissioner John Dalli, who caused controversy in March by approving cultivation of a GM potato used in starch production.

The plans are based on a joint Austrian Dutch proposal, which European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso pledged to implement last year as part of his bid for reappointment.

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The European Environment Agency today publishes the latest EU inventory of greenhouse gas emissions showing that emissions fell again significantly in 2008, the first year of the Kyoto Protocol's first commitment period. The fall marks the fifth consecutive annual decrease.

The emissions inventory for 2008, the latest year for which complete data is available, shows that EU-15 emissions dropped by 1.9% from 2007 while the economy grew by 0.6%. The reduction takes EU-15 emissions to 6.9% below their levels in the base year (1990 in most cases). This brings the EU-15 closer to reaching its Kyoto Protocol target of reducing emissions in the 2008-2012 commitment period to an average of 8% below the base year level. EU-27 emissions fell 2% over the year to 11.3% below the 1990 level.

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Danish authorities have prepared a new plan of action to fight salmonella in pork.
The background for the plan of action is that Denmark is facing challenges in the field of antibiotics says the latest Export Bulletin.

The consumption of antibiotics has increased, both for human use and also for livestock production.

At the same time complex problems with resistance, which have been seen in other countries, have started to appear in Denmark.

The plan aims to ensure Danes can maintain the effect of antibiotics in the treatment of humans, while at the same time, ensuring serious infections in livestock and domestic animals can go on being treated.

To read the bulletin, click here.

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For the latest international price, click here.

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