Integration of organic pig production into land use

The development in organic livestock production can be attributed to an increased consumer interest in organic products while, at the same time, farmers are interested in converting to organic production methods – often stimulated by governmental support or subsidies. It is important that the organic production systems can fulfil the expectations of each of these stakeholders if the organic livestock production is to increase further. This is in particular important if the organic pig production should move from the present niche-production to a real player in the food marked, like in the case of beef and milk. In the regulations for organic farming, the aspect of allowing a high degree of natural behaviour of the livestock is among others translated in the requirement that livestock in certain periods of their life or of the year should be allowed to graze or have access to another outdoor area. The most common outdoor systems for pig used in intensively managed organic production have some important drawbacks in relation to environmental impact (risk of N-leaching and ammonia volatilisation), animal welfare (nose-ringed sows) and workload and management constraints. With the starting point in the present experience in such systems, it is argued that there is a need for a radical development of the systems. There is a need to search for systems where the outdoor/free range systems (for the sake of the livestock) are constructed and managed in a way whereby the livestock at the same time exert a positive influence on other parts of the farming systems. There is evidence that pregnant sows can fulfil their nutritional needs to a large extent by grazing, that co-grazing sows with heifers can diminish the parasite burden of the heifers, and that the pigs’ inclination for rooting can be managed in a way that makes ploughing and other heavy land cultivation more or less superfluous. These elements need to be further explored as a basis for future system development

The mating behavior and reproduction performance in a multi-sire mating system for pigs

An important aim of organic animal production is to allow natural animal behaviour. Regarding reproduction techniques, artificial insemination is permitted but natural mating is preferred. The outdoor multi-sire system, where the sows are placed in large paddocks with a group of boars, is one example of a service system, which complies well with the organic ideals of facilitating natural animal behavior. However, very little knowledge is available about such system. Seven groups of in total of 47 sows and 31 boars were observed to study the mating behavior in an outdoor multi-sire mating system and the subsequent reproduction results. The time of start of courtship, behavior and the cause of disruption if the courtship was terminated, were recorded each time a boar courted a sow. All aggressive interactions between the boars were also recorded to estimate the boar ranking order. The observations revealed numerous poor quality matings, a huge variation in the number of times sows are mated, and overworked boars. Only 35% of all copulations lasted 2 min or more and 63% of all copulations were disrupted, mainly by competitor boars. The higher social status of the boar, the more copulations did it disrupt ( p < 0.05). The outcome was an unacceptable variation in reproduction results. Only 71% of all estrus sows conceived, corresponding to a pregnancy rate of 77% of all mated sows. A large inter-group variation in reproduction performance was observed, indicating scope for improvements. In some groups all sows showed estrus and all sows conceived. Recommendations for improvement of the system are proposed

Organic livestock production systems and appropriate development in relation to public expectations

There has been a tremendous growth in numbers of organic farms in EU over the latest years – from below 20,000 farms in year 1992 to more than 120,000 farms in 1999 (Padel, 2001). Worldwide-certified organic production takes place in 130 countries, half of which are developing countries (ITC, 1999). The market share in EU, however, on total is still quite low ranging from less than 0.5% in nine out of 18 countries some countries to 5-9% in other countries for some major product groups (Michelsen et al., 1999). Livestock production and especially ruminant livestock production forms an integral part of many organic farms due to its role in nutrient recycling on farms. Out of 16 European countries, livestock products were within the top five organic products in 14 countries (Michelsen et al., 1999). The market share of livestock products, however, is very different from product to product. In Austria, Denmark, Switzerland and Finland milk products are the most important organic products. Pork and poultry only play a minor role whereas eggs in some countries are quite important. The recent development of organic farming in Europe is not only a matter of (marginal) agricultural change (Michelsen, 2001). It also represents an implantation of important aspects of recent major changes in society at large into agriculture. Essential vehicles in the development of the concept of organic farming are values expressing a general criticism of mainstream European agriculture and more general doubts about the interplay between man and nature as reflected in modern technology. In society at large these doubts have manifested themselves in growing political and public concern for the environment, increasing doubt regarding the importance of science in solving social problems, and increasing doubts about how society should be governed. The actual development can be attributed to an increased consumer interest in organic products throughout Europe while, at the same time, farmers are interested in converting to organic production methods – often stimulated by governmental support or subsidies. The main actors mentioned, however, do not necessarily have the same expectation to organic farming and the future development in organic farming in general as well as the individual livestock systems in particular may depend on to what degrees common expectations can be fulfilled. The aim of this paper is to highlight some expectations from main actors and to discuss the importance of this for the appropriate development of different livestock systems

Organic agriculture in relation to food security of developing countries

A study was conducted to investigate the differences in farm production, input use and farm income between organic and conventional systems in three regions (Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh and Tamilnadu) of India. From each region, 40 organic and 40 conventional farmers were interviewed with semi structured questionnaire. The results showed that input costs were less in the organic system while either total farm yield or net margin was righter in the organic system in two of the three regions. In Tamilnadu specializing in rice production, rice yield was less under organic system while net margin did not differ signifcantly. In addition, the IFPRI-IMPACT model was used to fnd out the impact of large scale conversion to organic farming on food security of Sub-Saharan Africa. The model showed that large scale conversion to organic farming in Europe and North America will not have major impact on food security of Africa and large scale conversion in Sub-Saharan Africa will improve the local food security

Organic pig production – With particular reference to Danish production conditions

While there is a markedly growth in organically farmed land and in the organic food sector as such in Europe and North America, the organic pig sector has not developed correspondingly in most countries. This weaker development seems most likely to be due to difficulties for pig producers to comply with the organic standards, which impose comparatively more pronounced changes in the way of production than e.g. in ruminant production systems. Pigs should have access to roughage and to grazing in the summer period although finishers can be kept in barns if access to an outdoor rum. A common way to comply with these regulations is to have sows on grassland all year round, but to rear the finishers in stables. Outdoor piglet production can be very efficient but careful measures needs to be taken to avoid environmental risks. Ringing of sows to avoid rooting on the grassland is a matter of concern. The regulations for housing include a considerable larger area per pig than in conventional production. This support good production and health results in the finisher production, and the regulation stating no tail docking does not seem to impose problems. However, such stables are often very expensive to establish and outdoor rearing of finishers throughout the growing period should be considered. Recent results indicate that this is a viable option. The ban on use of synthetic amino acids and GMO products for feeding represent a challenge in the feeding of finishers. There is a risk regarding carcass quality when soybean meal and amino acid are substituted with more oil rich ingredients for protein supply. On the other hand inclusion of new protein sources in the diet may results in particular meat quality characteristics including positive effects. It is concluded that there is a need in organic pig production to produce “new” products, which differ from the conventional pork products in order to comply with consumer expectations

Growth and sensory characteristics of alternative genotype broilers reared in organic orchards

The effects of age, sex and genotype on growth and sensory characteristics in organically produced broilers, when kept considerably longer before slaughtering, were examined. A total of 450 birds consisting of three genotypes, Light Sussex, New Hampshire, and the commercial strain I 657 were inserted at Fejoe Research Orchard. Half the birds were slaughtered at 91 days of age and half at 120 days of age. I 657 was significantly heavier compared to the slower growing breeds and Light Sussex was significantly heavier than New Hampshire. Males were significantly heavier than females across genotype, but weight ratios differed with genotype. No overall effect of genotype was found on the flavour or smell of the breast meat, but the commercial strain went towards a tougher and less tender consistency at 120 days of age, whereas the opposite was the case for the slower growing pure breeds. The positive flavour of salt was significantly improved at 120 days of age across genotype and age, with females having saltier flavour than the males. The positive flavour of sweet corn was improved in the meat from the males, but the positive smell of sweet corn was significantly improved in both males and females. No negative consequences of age were found

Full or partial outdoor rearing of slaughter pigs – effects on performance, carcass quality and nutrient load

An experiment with slaughter pigs from weaning to slaughter including five treatments and five replicates was carried out at the Danish organic experimental station, Rugballegård. Treatments included full or partial outdoor rearing of the pigs, and the replicates covered the seasonal effects. Pigs fed ad libitum indoors had a significantly lower feed consumption (5 MJ ME /kg gain), a lower lean percentage (2.3% points), and a higher backfat depth (1.1 mm, P < 0.05) than pigs fed ad libitum outdoors. Compared with outdoor pigs fed ad libitum, restricted feeding outdoors resulted in a significantly lower daily gain (107 g), a lower feed consumption (6.3 MJ ME/kg gain), higher lean percentage (2.1% points), and a reduced backfat (1.8 mm) (P <0.001). The content of soil nitrogen was considerably higher than for the soil outside the paddocks. Despite a considerable variation within the paddocks, N was distributed throughout the paddock. The present investigation highlights the fact that outdoor rearing of organic finishers may be a competitive option even in a temperate climate and all year round

The effect of breed and feed-type on the sensory profile of breast meat in male broilers reared in an organic free-range system

1. Studies on the sensory profiling of male broiler breast meat were carried out to evaluate the effect of two very different broiler breeds (JA757 and New Hampshire), two different feed types (broiler and grower feed) and age at slaughter (82 and 110 d). 2. The sensory profiling consisted of a pilot study, 4 training sessions, and finally the assessment. During the training session a panel of 9 assessors defined 17 attributes, which were used to describe the smell, texture and flavour of the breast fillets. Each attribute was evaluated on a 15-cm unstructured line scale. 3. The breast meat became significantly less hard, and more juicy and tender in the New Hampshire at 110 d of age, whereas the opposite was found in JA757, which also acquired a more ‘‘sourish’’ flavour with age. The smell of ‘‘sweet/maize’’ and ‘‘bouillon’’ became weaker with age in JA757, but not in New Hampshire. 4. Several significant differences in relation to the main factors of breed and age were found. The traditional broiler hybrid JA757 did best for most smell and flavour attributes, whereas New Hampshire did best for the texture attributes. Age had a negative effect on the flavours and smell attributes ‘‘fresh chicken’’, ‘‘neck of pork’’ and ‘‘sweet maize’’, but a positive effect on the texture attribute ‘‘crumbly’’. In addition meat was more ‘‘stringy’’ at 110 d of age. 5. The flavours ‘‘neck of pork’’ and ‘‘umami’’ were significantly improved when JA757 was fed on the broiler feed and when New Hampshire was given the grower feed. The meat smelt more ‘‘sourish’’ at 82 d of age and less ‘‘sourish’’ at 110 d of age when the grower feed was consumed. Meat was significantly harder and stringier when JA757 was fed on the grower feed. This was not the case for New Hampshire. In general, the meat was significantly less crumbly and stringier with the grower feed. 6. Overall a very distinct difference in sensory profile was found between the two breeds. In addition different slaughter ages and feeding strategies should be taken into consideration in a niche production based on alternative genotypes