“If ingredients are expensive, we may be wasting our money if we focus on maximizing diet density because it may not pay for the investment. Our recommendations, normally, are not to reach maximum biological potential but it’s based on economics.” – Dr. Justina Caldas.

Today’s episode will cover “Nutritionist’s role in a genetic company”.

Our guest is Dr. Justina Caldas. Dr. Caldas got her bachelor’s degree in Animal Science from the Agrarian University in Peru and a Ph.D. in broiler and breeder nutrition at the University of Arkansas, in 2015. After finishing her studies, Justina was hired by Cobb-Vantress, one of only two meat-type chicken breeding companies in the world.

What you will learn:

• The hot topics on poultry production;
• Interesting findings in poultry nutrition in the last 12-24 months;
• Appropriate nutritional recommendations for the latest genetics;
• What separates successful poultry professionals from those that are not.

Justina’s favorite poultry-related book: Nutrition of the Chicken

Justina’s favorite book in general: Inner Wisdom

This episode was edited and published by Lauro Faccin.

“I always try to suggest to people, you don't want boars eating too little feed because you'll hurt semen production. Also, you don't want boars to get overfed so that they're fat, it decreases their locomotion ability, it decreases their jump time on the artificial insemination dummies. [From a body condition standpoint] we don't want to get on the extremes, we want to be as much in the middle as we can.” – Dr. Mark Wilson.

Today’s episode will cover “Boar Management and Nutrition”.

Our guest is Dr. Mark Wilson. Dr. Wilson earned both a doctoral and a master’s degree from the University of Kentucky, and a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University. The first 11 years of his professional career were spent as a professor at the University of Minnesota (Waseca) where he coordinated the swine research at the Southern Experimental Station. Wilson then served as director of technical service at United Feeds, while overseeing the boar and sow research. He has also spent time working for Minitube of America and Ralco Nutrition. Currently, Dr. Wilson is part of the research and nutritional services team at Zinpro Corporation and an adjunct faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Minnesota.

What you will learn:

• Key aspects of boar nutrition and feeding;
• The top 3 common mistakes in boar nutrition and feeding;
• Most important aspects for maximum performance in the boar stud;
• The top 3 common mistakes in boar management;
• Thoughts on Lysine levels and boar research;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Mark’s favorite swine-related book: Diseases of Swine

Mark’s favorite book unrelated to swine: Holy Bible and books about leadership (how to work with people)

This episode was edited and published by Lauro Faccin. These episodes could not get done without Lauro’s support. You might recognize the last name. Good genetics.

“(…) not the kind of animal we wanted to put into a farrowing house because she would be more likely to crush her litter and not effectively comfortably fit in the stall. We started to transition away from the back fat because as we looked at that female and really spend some time with her, the reality was that she was a leaner derived female and yet we were treating her like she was more fat and lean.” – Dr. Laura Greiner.

Today’s episode will cover “Sow feeding and research: Do’s and Don’ts”.

Our guest is Dr. Laura Greiner, Assistant Professor at Iowa State University. Dr. Greiner holds a Master of Science and a PhD both in Swine Nutrition and Immunology at Iowa State University then a Postdoctoral Training in Microbiology at the University of Iowa.

What you will learn:

• Changes on genetic lines from a feeding standpoint;
• Her thoughts on Gilt feeding;
• Key areas of research needed in sow feeding today;
• Lessons learned on applied sow research;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Laura’s favorite swine-related book: The Lactating Sow

Edited by Lauro Faccin

“No one really cared about the whole to found ASF research when it was on Africa. And now that’s in many countries that are major pig producers, it’s a big concern for everybody.” – Dr. Douglas Gladue.

Today’s episode will cover “ASF vaccine: light at the end of the tunnel?”.

Our guests are Dr. Douglas Gladue and Dr. Manuel Borca, both from the USDA, and they will share the latest developments about African Swine Fever vaccines. Dr. Gladue is a Senior Scientist at the Foreign Animal Disease Research Unit, and Dr. Borca works for the Agricultural Research Service of the Department of Agriculture as the lead scientist at the Foreign Animal Disease Unit at Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York.

What you will learn:

• The challenge in getting an effective ASF vaccine;
• The latest updates on getting an effective vaccine;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Their favorite swine-related book or resource: Pig Progress

Edited by Lauro Faccin

“How much prevention you want to put in place? It is just how much risk is one willing to take. And a lot of factors determine that... if we think about the modes of transportation and think about each route of entry can be giving risk level, depending on the phase of production, geography, and other production system characteristics.” – Dr. Jessica Risser.

Today’s episode will cover “PRRS: From "mystery disease" to not so mysterious anymore”.

Our guest is Dr. Jessica Risser, Elanco’s Senior Technical Consultant. Jessica joined Elanco after 10 years at Country View Family Farms, before that, she received a Bachelor’s of Science in Agricultural Biochemistry from West Virginia University, a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from North Carolina State University, and completed the Executive Veterinary Program for Swine Veterinarians at the University of Illinois.

What you will learn:

• The brief history of PRRS;
• Economic impact of PRRS to the global swine industry;
• Latest and deepest understanding of PRRS;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Jessica’s favorite swine-related book: Diseases of Swine

Jessica’s favorite book unrelated to swine: Pride and Prejudice and Never Split the Difference

Edited by Lauro Faccin

“Most of the regulations that the New Welfare Code is asking us to do, 95% of the producers are already doing that. The only one that will need some time [to figure it out] is the banning of the farrowing crates… they stated only the intentions for that, we do not know when it’s going to happen.” – Sebastián Casiró.

Today’s episode will cover “UK pig production trends”.

Our guest is Sebastián Casiró, Production Director at Yorkwold Pigpro LIMITED, holds a DVM from the University of Buenos Aires, and a Master’s Degree in Animal Science at Michigan State University.

What you will learn:

• Hot topics today in UK;
• Rapid-fire questions: short questions about the current situation;
• Differences between pig production in UK and Argentina;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Sebastián’s favorite swine-related book: The Genetics of the Pig

Sebastián’s favorite book unrelated to swine: Thinking, Fast and Slow

Edited by Lauro Faccin

“If I had a crystal ball, I think we are going to see a lot of animal scientists and tech companies trying to solve problems together. I cannot make an algorithm; I am an animal scientist so I think there is a lot of room for collaboration.” – Dr. Ashley DeDecker.

Today’s episode will cover “Impactful, repeatable, and applied research in swine production”.

Our guest is Dr. Ashley DeDecker, the Director of Production Research for Smithfield’s Hog Production Division, B.S. in Animal Science at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale and Ph.D. in swine behavior and stress physiology at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

What you will learn:

• Commercial research, field trial, trial, and “try it”;
• How to calculate the impact of research and profit across the system;
• The research prioritization matrix;
• Top research objectives for the long-term;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Ashley’s favorite swine-related book: Boss Hog: The Legacy of Wendell H. Murphy

Ashley’s favorite book unrelated to swine: Dan Brown’s books

Edited by Lauro Faccin

Today’s episode will cover “Sow cooling strategies”.

“The true upper critical temperature of our modern sow nursing 14 pigs it is right at 18oC, and it may be cooler than 18oC. Anyone that runs their farrowing house hotter than 18oC is already overheating the sow.” – Dr. Allan Schinckel.

Our guest is Dr. Allan Schinckel. Dr. Schinckel is a faculty member in the Animal Science Department at Purdue University. He received a B.S. in Animal Science from Iowa State University and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Quantitative Genetics from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. His research interests include lean growth modeling, pork quality, repartitioning agents, and methods to predict carcass composition and value. Dr. Schinckel has collaborated on numerous swine research projects, including production systems, environmental effects on pig growth, food safety, growth promotants, and biological markers of disease and stress.

What you will learn:

• The economic estimate of heat stress in sows;
• The latest strategies for cooling sows;
• What can be implemented today;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Allan’s favorite swine-related book: NRC (2012)

Allan’s favorite book unrelated to swine: Holy Bible and No more food fights

Edited by Lauro Faccin

“Your learning has not stopped when you left college, does not stop when you finish your training program, does not stop when you finish whatever it is you’ve done... even if you are in your 30s, 40s, 50s, or 60s, you have to continue to improve your skills and prepare for the future… which is going to be extremely competitive.” – Aidan Connolly.

Our guest is Aidan Connolly, another bright mind of the Global Swine Industry. Aidan is CEO of startup Cainthus and an adjunct professor at University College Dublin and China Agricultural University. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in commerce from University College Dublin and a master’s degree in international marketing from the Smurfit School of Business, University College Dublin, Ireland. He is also an executive board member of the International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF), the National Chicken Council and the National Turkey Federation, and of the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA).

What you will learn:

• Things that seemed futuristic but are already starting to happen in livestock production;
• What is coming down the pipe and we should watch for, from an innovation standpoint;
• The future of agriculture;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

Aidan’s favorite swine-related book: Modern Pig Production (John Gadd)

Aidan’s favorite book unrelated to swine: Sapiens (Yuval Noah)

Edited by Lauro Faccin

Today’s episode will cover “One of the most important decisions in swine production: dietary energy level”.

“If you get dietary energy right you can keep your costs as low as possible… but if you get your energy wrong, you can affect performance and net income in a negative way.” – Dr. John Patience.

Our guest is Dr. John Patience, another bright mind of the Global Swine Industry. Dr. Patience is a global leader in swine nutrition research and internationally recognized speaker, received the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Outstanding Achievement in Research Award. Received his bachelor's degree in 1974 and his master's degree in 1976 from the University of Guelph, Ontario. He received his Doctor of Philosophy from Cornell University in 1985.

What you will learn:

• Why dietary energy is such an important decision;
• Understanding dietary energy in swine production;
• What is next for dietary energy;
• How can nutritionists figure out the optimum energy in swine diets;
• The importance of adjusting amino acids levels when changing energy level;
• The biggest problems when managing energy sources;
• What separates successful swine professionals from those that are not.

John’s favorite swine-related book: NRC (2012) and Comparative Nutrition of Fowl and Swine (Edwin Moran)

John’s favorite book unrelated to swine: No Man Alone (Wilder Penfield)

Edited by Lauro Faccin