The Feeding Behaviour Habits of Growing-Finishing Pigs and Its Effects on Growth Performance and Carcass Quality: A Review

Husbandry practices associated with extensification in European pig production and their effects on pork quality

This review has been developed as part of the mEATquality project with the main objective to examine the types of extensification practices used in European pig husbandry and their effect on intrinsic meat quality. Literature search has resulted in 679 references in total, from which 53 showed a strict compliance with the goals of this review: 1) the use of local European breeds and their crossbreds (22 papers); 2) addition of forage to diet (9 papers); 3) increased space allowance (3 papers); 4) enrichment of environment (19 papers). The evaluation of selected extensification factors showed that not all of them have a clear impact on meat quality, and are often confounded. The most clear differences were observed when comparing autochthonous with commercial breeds, and systems with access to pastures or woodlands vs. indoor housing. Despite many studies focusing on the extensification of husbandry practices, some of the factors cannot be confirmed to have a direct effect on pork intrinsic quality.

Multi-Criteria Evaluation Model of Management for Weaned Piglets and Its Relations with Farm Performance and Veterinary Medicine Consumption

Weaned piglets, being immature, demand careful handling to mitigate post-weaning stress in order to avoid immunosuppression and the use of antimicrobials to palliate the effects of disease outbreaks due to poor management. The objective of this work is to design a quick scan calculator or multi-criteria evaluation model of management for weaned piglets, founded on 10 critical indices covering post-weaning management aspects based on hygienic measures and management of facilities and animals. These include pre-weaning handling, batch management, biosecurity, water management, feed management, health program, stockmen training, temperature, ventilation, and floor conditions and density to relate handling and hygiene practices with farm performance and the consumption of veterinary medication. Each index carries a maximum score of ten, with evaluations derived from different management factors that make up each index (from three to eight factors were evaluated per index). Their cumulative score reflects the degree of adequacy of on-farm management. Therefore, a perfectly managed farm would achieve 100 points. The calculator underwent testing on 23 intensive farms with a total population of close to 16,000 sows and more than 400,000 weaned piglets, revealing the highest mean scores in floor conditions and density (8.03 out of 10) and pre-weaning handling and health programs (6.87 and 6.28, respectively). Conversely, the lowest scores corresponded to temperature, ventilation, water management, and stockmen training (4.08, 4.32, 4.81, and 4.93, respectively). The assessed farms averaged a global score of 56.12 out of 100 (from 37.65 to 76.76). The calculator's global score correlated with key post-weaning productivity and piglet health indicators, such as the feed conversion ratio, mortality rate, and piglet production cost, with r values of -0.442, -0.437, and -0.435, respectively (p < 0.05). Additionally, it negatively correlated with medication costs per piglet (r = -0.414; p < 0.05) and positively with annual farm productivity (r = 0.592; p < 0.01). To enhance management, hygiene, and prevention, farms should prioritize addressing indices with the lowest scores, thereby reducing medication consumption and enhancing productivity and health outcomes. Additionally, this quick scan calculator can be used for benchmarking purposes.

A New Approach to Detecting and Measuring Changes in the Feeding Behaviour Habits of Group-Housed Growing–Finishing Pigs

Simple Summary

It is known that feeding behaviour habits (FBHs) influence growing–finishing pigs’ performance and are modified by production conditions on a group scale. However, no methods are available to describe the evolution of the FBHs at the individual level over short- or long-term periods. This work presents two methods, i.e., repeatability (ratio between animal and total variance) and a new non-parametric approach named “maintenance”, which provides information at the individual level by typifying the individuals into classes and quantifying (%) the pigs that show similar FBHs. Both concepts were applied to six consecutive 14-day periods, throughout two trials of group-housed growing–finishing pigs under different environmental conditions and fed different physical feed forms (mash and pelleted). Both repeatability and maintenance indexes showed similar but not identical results, since they provide complementary information at the global and individual levels, respectively. The results indicate that the environmental conditions and physical feed form modified the repeatability and maintenance of most FBHs, except for the average daily feed intake. Moreover, since maintenance provides data at the individual level, this may be an interesting approach in further studies, for example, to analyse the influence of pen hierarchy on FBHs.

Abstract

The present work aims to estimate the methods of repeatability and of a new non-parametric approach based on typifying individuals into classes and quantifying (%) the pigs in a group that show similar feeding behaviour habits (FBHs) in consecutive periods (“maintenance”). Both methods were estimated over six consecutive 14-day periods in two trials of group-housed growing–finishing pigs (n = 60 each). The first trial started in summer and ended in autumn, and pigs were fed a pelleted diet (HT-P). The second trial started in spring and ended in summer, and the same diet was fed mash (TH-M). The average daily feed intake obtained the lowest repeatability and maintenance values, and it progressively decreased as pigs grew, independent of environmental conditions or physical feed form, whereas the maintenance and repeatability of the number of feeder visits and the visit size decreased when environmental conditions changed from temperate to hot, and mash-fed pigs had higher maintenance and repeatability values for the time spent eating than pellet-fed pigs. In conclusion, the new approach (maintenance) is a tool that is complementary to the classic repeatability concept and is useful for analysing the evolution of FBHs across periods of time at the individual level.