Pork Journal January/February 2012 by Primary Media

PJJanFeb2012:PJJanFeb09 10/03/12 4:47 PM Page 1

Pork Journal

January/February 2012 Volume 34, Number 1

Blantyre Farms turns to biogas to reduce energy costs

2012 Alltech Symposium to Envisage the World of 2050 Inaugural South Australian Pig Industry Day 2012 The 2012 Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship Dinner PrintPost Approved PP243096/00002 ISSN 1032 3759

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Contents 8 COVER STORY Blantyre Farms turns to biogas to reduce energy costs The first operational co-generation biogas scheme on a commercial pig farm in Australia is about to be completed at Blantyre Farms, owned by Michael and Edwina Beveridge and situated near Young in NSW.

NEWS Michael Beveridge, Blantyre Farms

Pork Journal January/February 2012 Volume 34, Number 1 Editorial Enquiries Peter Bedwell or Rosemary Embery 0419 235 288 Sales: Peter Bedwell Phone: +61 2 9798 3078 Mob: 0419 235 288 Email: ilvaril@iinet.net.au Website: www.primarymedia.com.au PORK JOURNAL consists of a bi-monthly management magazine and an annual industry review. Published by C D Supplies Pty Ltd (ACN 091 560 557)

Production: Rosemary Embery Email: rembery@iinet.net.au OFFICE ADDRESS: 250 Hawthorne Pde, Haberfield NSW 2045 Ph: (02) 9798 3078 Fax: (02) 9798 2105 SUBSCRIPTIONS: AUSTRALIA One year – $66.00*. Send payment and full details to: Pork Journal, GPO Box 1846, Sydney NSW 2001 Phone (02) 9492 7386 Fax: (02) 9492 7310 NEW ZEALAND One year – $NZ80. OTHER COUNTRIES Asia Pacific including the Subcontinent – One year: Airmail – $A90; Rest of the World – One year: Airmail – $A90. Please send payment in Australian dollars. *Australia subscription rate includes GST.

CHANGE OF ADDRESS: Send details to: GPO Box 1846, Sydney NSW 2001, Fax: (02) 9492 7310 (Subscriptions only). ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT (editorial and advertisements) and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the publishers. Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of the contents of PORK JOURNAL, the publishers do not accept any responsibility or liability for the material herein.

4 Inaugural South Australian Pig Industry Day 2012 On February 17, 2012 the Department of Primary Industry & Regions SA held its inaugural South Australian Pig Industry Day (2012) at the Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide. 16 2012 Alltech Symposium to Envisage the World of 2050 The world population is growing at an incredible rate, which means that people and industries alike must explore innovative ideas in order to plan for the future. During Alltech’s 28th Annual International Animal Health and Nutrition Symposium May 20-23, 2012, in Lexington, Kentucky, presenters will cover many topics related to feeding the world now and in the future. 18 Canada: Higher ethanol blends would hit livestock sector Policies designed to cut Canada’s emissions from fossil fuels have instead made the ethanol industry a “subsidised competitor” against the livestock sector, according to a new study from a well-known ag think tank. 19 Alltech appoints new Vice President for Europe Global animal health and nutrition company Alltech has announced the promotion of Patrick Charlton to the position of Vice President Europe. 19 Novus appointed Regional Sales Manager, South Australia and Victoria Wayne Francis has joined Novus Nutrition Ltd as Regional Sales Manager, Australia. He will be responsible for the Regional sales activities mainly in Victoria and South Australia. 19 NZ Pork Chief Executive praised by Otago Daily New Zealand Pork Chief Executive Sam McIvor is leaving after nearly six years in the role. 20 HelixX air washer for pig farms test positive for energy reduction The new version of the decentral HelixX systems, manufactured and marketed by German livestock equipment company Big Dutchman, has received positive feedback from the German Agricultural Society (DLG). The new version has been confirmed to stand out in energy reduction. 21 The 2012 Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship Dinner Ronald Lienert’s son Nick Lienert, now the Managing Director of Lienert Australia Pty Ltd, announced the winner of the 2012 Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship as Emma Greenwood, a student supervised by Dr Bob Hughes at Roseworthy.

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NEWS Inaugural South Australian Pig Industry Day 2012 On February 17, 2012 the Department of Primary Industry & Regions SA held its inaugural South Australian Pig Industry Day (2012) at the Roseworthy Campus, University of Adelaide. The event, with major sponsors Australian Pork Limited (APL) and The Pork CRC, consisted of three seminars followed by an Industry Partnership session and in the evening, The Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship Dinner. Graeme Pope was the course presenter and a driving force behind the day’s events along with the PIRSA’s Michael Moore. The turnout from both local producers and the industry was impressive and those who made the effort to attend were not disappointed by a well run and information packed day. The seminars that ran from midday to 4.00 pm were organised under three key topics. They were: Group Sow Housing – options and developments, Optimising herd feed use and effeciency, and APL marketing and policy update. Emalyn Louden, APL’s Manager Technology Transfer and Adoption took the role of chair for the seminars and introduced the first speaker Megan Verdon who spoke on the ‘Science of Sow Housing.’ Megan, a PhD candidate working with the University of Melbourne’s Animal Welfare Science Centre (AWSC) reported on the work being undertaken at that organisation into group sow housing. Megan’s study hypothesises that pigs display specific and consistent behaviours, such as aggressiveness, and that these behaviours can be used to classify the social strategy (dominant, sub-dominant and submissive) a pig adopts when group-housed under stress. In addition, a relationship should exist between a pigs’ social strategy and its performance in terms of welfare and productivity. Consequently, her study aims to test whether the distribution of strategies within a group affects the performance of individuals in that group, as well as the group as a whole. “Challenges,” she said, “were aggression causing injury and stress and the need to regulate the process of the sows establishing their heirachy. “Competition for restricted resources like food called for careful thought about the design of feeding areas: tests to establish cortisol release help to establish stress levels during specific periods and activities,” Megan explained.

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

She refered to a study conducted in 1998 where 48 sows were split into eight separate groups “as allocated space for each group increased there was a reduction in aggression lesions and cortisol levels. “Allocated space per sow of 1.4 square metres is likely to be too small and an area of around 1.8 m2 appears to be a more beneficial but more study and understanding of the whole space question needs to be undertaken,” she said. “Body stalls reduce aggression and in the first four days after mixing, aggressiveness is somewhat repeatable. Experience and genetics of sows are important factors and group composition in the mixing pens is important, as is staff training to enable the best group formation. “Be careful of space at mixing time and it is advisable to maintain small static groups if possible,” Megan concluded. Megan’s paper was the first she had delivered to a large industry group – that she thoughouly understood the topic of group sow housing was obvious, but perhaps of equal importance was her ability to transmit her knowledge to an audience outside the research community. The next speaker was Greg Bisset, grower, and top multiplier for the Myora group which supplies the Top Pork Alliance. ‘Producer perspectives on moving to stall free production’ was his topic and he explained in some detail his methods and motivation as he expanded his operations from 600 to 950 sows. “Coles requirements were a key factor in our decision to move to stall free housing,” he said “Considerations were use of existing w

4 1. Emalyn Louden, APL’s Manager, Technology Transfer & Adoption. 2. Megan Verdon, University of Melbourne. 3. Greg Bisset, Myora Group. 4. Jorge Pena and Vanessa Taggart from Alltech with Graeme Crook.

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NEWS v sheds, two sites with no electrical supply and bedding systems preffered by our customer. “Individual feeding in stalls when expanding from 600 to 950 sows increased management load significantly,” Greg explained. “On the topic of ad lib feeding component of the plan, Greg explained that this stops fighting and reduces stress at critical periods. Moving onto allocated space in his new system Greg had some concerns as they ran gilts separate from sows. “Two m2 per gilt was a bit tight and on the topic of allocating 3.6 m2 per gestating sow the main question was ‘what does the supermarket want?” “A lot of these strategies are driven by recognising the requirement to sell our product to city dwellers where perception is a vital marketing tool,” he said. “Other production driven initiatives include water some distance from feeders and low energy diets and the use of removable walls to allow for the correct number of spaces for free stalls. In concluding Greg pointed out that “genetics and nutrition were important factors in group sow housing as was stockmanship, including the ability to understand group dynamics. “On practical issues the design and reading of ear tags was critical as was the ability to efficiently get sows to move out of their pens. “Utilising available space was important as was the strength of construction of shed infrastructure – sows in groups can be very destructive,” he said. Impacts of the changes were mixed, Greg revealed. “Farrowing rate was ‘terrible’ but born alive was better with total born rate increased to 13.2 piglets per litter from 12.8 “Finally, you have to recognise that you are making monumental changes, prepare carefully, plan and take advice,” he concluded. The final speakers in the Group Sow Housing session were Shane Daykin from Stockyard Industries, Richard Boshoff from Mundigo and David Reu from Vaucluse APS who all offered advice on building and equipment supplies for shed conversions and construction. Amongst Shane Daykin’s recommendations were the installation of freedom stalls with a gate at the rear for easier treatment of individual animals. “Drop ceiling sheds can improve ventilation and drop feeding systems in pens are

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

not complicated and thus easy to operate,” he said. “Individual electronic sow feeding was very beneficial and Shane pointed out the success the Danish pig industry had made of group sow housing in terms of design and feeding systems. “In any production flow system avoid pinch points and when it came to slatted flooring, design and construction was very important. “Pigs need walls to lay against,” Shane emphasised. It is possible to mix modern technology with existing infrastructure, and finally, on the topic of bedding material, sawdust was preferable to straw in helping to control diets. “Pigs won’t eat sawdust,” Shane pointed out. Richard Boshoff from Mundigo stated that growers faced two basic options in any move to group sow housing. “Revamp existing or build from scratch. Revamp results in a reduction in capacity and it is essential to refurbish all concrete work – 30% of the floor area in group housing should be slatted in a move to group sow feeding,” he stated. “Trickle feed systems were useful in creating a calmer shed and the US-built automated feed systems they recommended has the ability to repair software on line – a very useful benefit,” he concluded. David Reu spoke on the benefits of electronic sow feeding systems. His company has been involved with ESF for three years but in the UK where the system marketed by APS Vaucluse is built, the industry there has been utilizing ESF for over 25 years. “ESF delivers accurate individual feeding based on the sow’s condition and state of pregnancy,” he said. “It can be used in large social groups and significantly reduces potential aggression delivering easier management control saving time and thus, money. “There is a need for staff training to fully understand the capabilities and correct use of the system but benefits flow immediately. “The sows no longer see humans as feed carts and only take a couple of days to get used to the system,” he said. “ESF can be retro fitted or be part of a new facility but success starts with planning,” David emphasised. In the ‘Optimising herd feed use efficiency session’, Tony Edwards of ACE Livestock Consulting spoke first on ‘How to improve feed efficiency in commercial situations’. CONTINUED ON PAGE 22 w

5 1. Shane Daykin, Stockyard Industries. 2. David Reu, Vaucluse APS. 3. Tony Edwards, ACE Livestock Consulting. 4. Dr Eugeni Toura, University of Queensland. 5. Liam Silk, Senior Brand Manager, APL.

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Covered pond at Dead Horse Gully captures enough methane to run at least 2 80 kW generators.

Blantyre Farms turns to biogas to reduce energy costs

By PETER BEDWELL

he first operational co-generation biogas scheme on a commercial pig farm in Australia is about to be completed at Blantyre Farms situated near Young in NSW. Michael and Edwina Beveridge are now the owners and operators of Blantyre Farms after taking the operation over from

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

Edwina’s parents, Dugald and Jeannie Walker in 2007. “Blantyre Farms has undergone significant expansion in the past few years, including new dry sow sheds, a new farrowing house and an upgrade from hand feeding most of our breeder pigs, to a Weda liquid feed system,” Edwina said. “We thought that we could achieve better performance from our straw/rice hulls based eco sheds for weaners and growers. The soaring cost of straw during the drought added to our decision to convert the eco sheds to fully slatted floors and liquid feed. We also added 16 new weaner rooms. “The liquid feed system utilises liquid waste products; around 50% of our feed is waste products in fact. Though this feeding strategy creates significant feed costs savings there is a fair bit of infrasructure and labour content to contend with, including handling sizeable quantities of milk-based product containers. Edwina observed that the pigs get

excited when chocolate and strawberry flavoured milk was in the feed mix ! “We became aware of the idea of methane digestion through APL and the biogas group” she said. Dugald Walker has always been an innovator in the pig industry and has helped Michael and Edwina with the construction of their methane capture and power generation set up. “Blantyre’s system includes a covered pond and electricity generation machinery at both the breeder site (Golden Grove) and the grower site (Dead Horse Gully). “The larger anaerobic dam at Dead Horse Gully is 115m x 40m and holds 15 megalitres of waste while the Golden Grove pond is 60m x 30m and contains 5.5 megalitres,” she explained. “The dams have been covered with 2mm LLPE material covers and a 3.5 km pipeline runs between the two sites and allows excess gas produced at our grower facility to be available for use at the breeder sheds. “The Brisbane based company Quantum Power has supplied three fully self contained 80 kW biogas fueled generator units and between them they will generate enough electricity to fully power both farm sites and give us the ability to sell excess power to the main power grid system. “A heat exchanger system on the gensets will be used to heat water which will be circulated through hot water tiles in w

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v the farrowing house and in Delta pipe in our weaner rooms,” Edwina added. When Pork Journal visited the Dead Horse Gully grow-out facility at Blantyre Farms in early February, the final stages of setting up the digestor units and connecting the methane gas supply to the generator units was well underway. We have had a keen interest in the potential of converting farm waste to energy since APL hosted an open day at Jeremy Whitby’s farm at Grantham in Queensland 1 where a methane capture pilot scheme had been constructed to examine the specific methodology of covering a waste pond and capturing, then flaring the methane generated under the bladder. We covered that story in our July/August 2010 issue. By comparison, the Blantyre farm methane capture, power generation and shed heating scheme is on a totally different scale altogether. Apart from the far greater volume of waste containment and methane generation, the Blantyre farm equipment cleans the raw methane as it emerges from the ponds, removing both water (caused mainly by condensation) and hydrogen sulphide using ‘scrubber’ units situated next to the 2 ponds. This cleaning process results in the production of an efficient fuel that is not only ideal for specifically designed gensets like the Quantum Power supplied units to produce electricity, but also for reducing overall critical emissions: around two thirds of methane emissions created on typical pig farms are consumed in the co-generation process. “It has been an expensive project but we expect the payback period to be about two years. We are very excited about becoming ‘energy self sufficient’ and with the system up and running we should be able to eliminate our power bills in just a few weeks. “We have registered with the Carbon 3 Farming Initiative and look forward to earning credits,” Edwina said. As with all complex enterprises there are always some hitches and though the installation of the gensets and methane ‘scrubber units’ was going to plan, a minor hitch was evident in the paint scheme used on the skid mounted shipping container style genset units. “We wanted an olive green to blend in with the background. What arrived was a rather more vibrant tone of green. “I suppose it was one of those things that got lost in translation,” she surmised. The paint job apart, the engineering standards in these units is top class. The Quantum biogas gensets use a Cummins power unit driving Leroy Somer alternators; 4 both key components being ‘gold standard’ w

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

1. Blantyre Farms grower sheds – part of an extensive upgrade to the property. 2. Owners of Blantyre Farms, Edwina and Michael Beveridge. 3. Liquid feed using dairy waste products. Happy Monday is chocolate milk day! 4. Cummins based generator power unit showing flame trap bottom right and induction system.

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v in power generation equipment. This combination has been proven successful for a long period in remote and challenging conditions around the world. In the US, compressed natural gas and biofuel have been in use for both road transport and power generation for many years. While harnessing biofuel from intensive livestock industries may be a relatively new technology in Australia, it has been well proven elsewhere and particularly in Europe. For Quantum Power Limited, a leading Australian biogas company, the Blantyre Farms installation will be its third biogas fired power plant sold in Australia. “The biogas produced from the covered anaerobic lagoons at the rate of 125 cubic meters of biogas per hour, will be harvested and used as fuel for three 80kW biogas gensets. “In addition to the fully containerised gensets, the installation also features remote management functionality and two biogas scrubbing systems to remove contaminants from the biogas,” explained Justin Vianello, the Commercial Director of Quantum Power Limited. Quantum Power CEO Richard Brimblecombe said, “this particular project is very exciting for our company because it leverages our considerable experience in delivering renewable energy projects in the food processing industry and applies our technology to the pig industry for the first time,” he said. “This project will take advantage of the financial incentives available to pig producers from the Federal Government’s Carbon Farming Initiative.

Above: In the weaner sheds straw has been abandoned and fully slatted floors are used. Right: Quantum Power supplied 80 kW biogas fueled generator units.

“This legislation provides financial incentives for pig producers to cover anaerobic lagoons and use the biogas to generate renewable energy. “It’s a common sense approach to the problem of rising energy costs and concerns about greenhouse gas emissions,” he added. “Pig producers can now use the biogas produced from their anaerobic lagoons to generate renewable energy and co-generated heat for use in the piggery operation, while also creating Large Generation Certificates and Australian Carbon Credit Units, which can be sold to provide a return on the capital invested in the power generation equipment. “It’s a win for Blantyre Farms because

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they can generate their own cost effective energy and a win for the environment because the process abates significant volumes of carbon, which would otherwise be emitted into the atmosphere. “Following the successful commissioning of the Blantyre Farms project it’s our intention to now focus on the pig industry to assist producers to access the benefits of our proven technology package and exclusive biogas genset distribution rights,” Mr Brimblecombe said. “Quantum Power is Australia’s leading biogas based renewable energy company. “It’s technology is suitable for food processing plants and intensive livestock operations where anaerobic lagoons are used to break down the organic load in waste streams. “In addition to providing turnkey solutions, Quantum Power also owns and operates a 1,100kW biogas power plant in Beaudesert, Queensland and the company has exclusive distribution rights for the highly regarded biogas gensets, which feature Cummins engines and Leroy Somer alternators,” Mr Brimblecombe concluded. The co-generation biogas scheme installed at the Blantyre Farms received some funding from APL as part of research being conducted under its Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) that was first established in April 2010. Janine Price, Manager Environment & Climate Change - Research & Innovation at APL explained what the CFI meant for Australian pig farmers when Pork Journal visited APL offices in Canberra on the day following the trip to Blantyre Farms. Janine is also the subprogram leader for the Pork CRC research into ‘Carbon –Neutral Pork Production, an initiative set

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LR POSITIONAL up under Program 4 - Carbon-Conscious Nutrient Inputs and Outputs’?lead overall by Dr Rob Wilson. “Subprogram 4c researching??carbon-neutral pork production will involve highly novel research to maximise methane production from effluent ponds so that collection and use of gas is economically viable. “Alternative approaches to waste management will also be studied to develop solid-waste pork production systems that mitigate carbon outputs,” Janine explained. So what does the CFI mean for pig producers? “Pig producers can potentially generate carbon credits based on reducing or avoiding methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) on site,” Janine explained “They will be included under the initiative as an ‘agricultural emissions avoidance project’. That is a project to avoid emissions of nitrous oxide and methane from the decomposition of livestock urine and dung or from land application and there is also the opportunity for revegetation projects. “The majority of projects for pig producers will fall under the additionality component of the scheme, where the projects must prove that they create additional reductions in green house gas (GHG) emissions that would otherwise not have occurred on a day to day running of the business and the emissions need to be measurable and verified,” she said. “The Australian Pork Industry was the first industry to have a methodology endorsed and approved by the Domestic Offsets committee (DOIC) for CFI in Australia. “This methodology is titled ‘Destruction of methane generated from manure in piggeries’. The industry developed the methodology in conjunction with the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DCCEE) as well as a technical working group made up of industry experts,” Janine explained. “The protocols contain the requirements for implementing and monitoring the GHG abatement in order to generate carbon credits. “Credits for GHG destruction qualify for Kyoto credits, whereas sequestration (ie forestry credits) are nonKyoto,” Janine pointed out. “The two main CFI areas for pig producers that are recognised practises, are manure management which includes building covered ponds, flaring and utilisation (eg power and or heat production) and nitrogen and fertiliser management with land application. “To a lesser extent, producers could claim credits for w

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v sequestration projects such as revegetation and soil carbon,” Janine said. “As 66% of emissions from a pork supply chain come from effluent ponds, covering and flaring of methane generated offers great potential as it will eliminate a significantly large proportion of emissions from a piggery. “For this project an existing (if suitable - sometimes a new smaller deeper pond is cheaper than covering a larger pond that will need to be desludged prior to covering) or new effluent pond is covered with a polypropylene or low density polypropylene cover that is trenched in around the sides of the pond. “Then a perforated pipe is laid around the perimeter of the pond under the cover to capture and convey the biogas to a ‘landfill’ flare. The flare is operated by a solar spark that continuously burns the CH4 and turns it CO2 and H2O,” Janine explained. “A covered pond with flaring eliminates odour, is a low cost initiative and is simple to operate and maintain. Further effluent can be recycled for washdown, enable capture of rainwater from the pond cover and finally, the result is improved sludge, reduced odour and improved potential fertiliser value.” “Covering and utilising biogas for cogeneration is a project that is the next step up from covering and flaring but has the same objective in terms of the destruction of methane,” Janine said. “The pond is covered but instead of flaring, the biogas is utilised to generate heat and or electricity. Additional infrastructure is needed such as a scrubber, to remove the corrosive hydrogen sulphide, a boiler to convert to heat and or a gen-set to convert the biogas to electricity. On the topic of nitrogen and fertiliser management, Janine suggested that, “the reduction in fertiliser/manure application to land and the use of nitrous oxide inhibitors may also be a likely source of credits for pig producers. “Carbon sequestration via soil carbon or revegetation are to a lesser extent projects that could be undertaken by pig producers although we don’t envisage these being widely taken up,” she said. Australian Pork Industry Biogas Program “APL has identified transferable low cost biogas systems based on NZ research,” Janine explained. “From this, APL initiated the development of a biogas group with interested producers who have now developed five feasibility and implementation plans and one farm implementation review.

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

Above: New grow out sheds, part of the comprehensive upgrade undertaken at Blantyre Farms. Left: The scrubber units situated next to the ponds which clean the raw methane, removing water and hydrogen sulphide.

“The projects have identified a range of systems and uses including heat generation, offsetting electricity use from the grid and replacement of LPG and diesel sources. “These projects have all come back with payback periods of 12 months to four years. (not including CFI credits or renewable energy certificates RECs). “At present it is understood that five of the projects are likely to go ahead with the co-generation and one is likely to cover and flare as part of a staged project.” “APL is supporting the Biogas program by coordinating the Biogas group and researchers, disseminating information and holding workshops for interested producers. “APL is also currently facilitating opportunities to work with NZ researchers on collaborative projects to benefit both industries, as well as Australian specific industry needs such as Biogas cooling systems,” Janine revealed. “On the topics of returns to growers through CFI based on CO2 being priced at $23 pet tonne, approximately $3.45 per finished pig is a reasonable expectation,

though this figure does not take into account potential brokerage fees and auditing costs. Possibly the ‘elephant in the room’ on the whole topic of any carbon capture initiatives for agriculture generally and the pig industry specifically is the successful introduction of an Australian Emissions trading scheme. “Tradability and subsequent value will affect viability of the CFI initiative for producers, and the likely impact of what will be essentially political issues are currently unknown,” Janine concluded. While the future of carbon trading and maybe even the carbon tax may be at this stage unclear, it is gratifying to see that innovative producers like Edwina and Michael Beveridge have just gone ahead and committed to making their businesses fit for operation in a 21st Century scenario. Whatever governments at both state and federal levels decide, one thing is for sure, energy costs will rise and Michael and Edwina have made the best of what current technology can offer to fix that problem.

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NEWS 2012 Alltech Symposium to Envisage the World of 2050 The world population is growing at an incredible rate, which means that people and industries alike must explore innovative ideas in order to plan for the future. Agriculture will play a tremendous role in shaping that future as producers grapple with the challenges of feeding the booming global population – projected to reach 9 billion people by 2050 – while dealing with diminishing resources and environmental concerns. To feed that population, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reports that global food production must double by 2050 to avoid mass hunger. According to Alltech, this can only be achieved through improved technology. During Alltech’s 28th Annual International Animal Health and Nutrition Symposium May 20-23, 2012, in Lexington, Kentucky, presenters will cover many topics related to feeding

the world now and in the future. The event is expected to draw more than 2,000 participants from around the world. Participants will explore innovative solutions to growing industry and global challenges as they attend sessions and network with other professionals from across borders and industry segments. Dr Pearse Lyons, President and founder of Alltech, described some of the issues that must be addressed by the agriculture industry. “As we look to our future, we have some major questions that we need to come together and answer through innovative solutions,” Dr Lyons said. “For example, what does the future hold for our children’s world? What role will you play in it? Where will you be? As we look to our children’s future, we must revolutionise how we think about the business of food production.” Through more than 100 presentations by industry experts, including speakers from major industry leaders such as Domino’s Pizza, Jack in the Box, Wendy’s, Nestle, Murphy-Brown, Future Farmers of America, PetSmart and the Harvard School of Business, Alltech’s Symposium will examine innovative strategies and focus on ideas for better use of resources, improved business practices and natural nutritional solutions. In addition to general sessions, the Symposium will provide

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NEWS opportunities for professionals to attend breakout sessions in areas such as aquaculture, beef, dairy, equine, poultry, pig production, pet food and regulatory along with new focus areas offered for this year on food quality, traceability, crop science, legal, marketing, information technology and designer food. The Symposium will explore possible answers to questions facing the agricultural industry today such as: • How can we feed a world with 9 billion people? • Why does China succeed while the economies of Europe and America struggle? • What are the implications of a $100 billion Facebook? • How can agriculture benefit from the first global youth network? • Is aquaculture the future of protein? • Why does Alltech predict that epigenetics and programmed nutrition are the future of meat production? • Why is salesmanship fundamental to

building a business? • What does the next generation of lawyers, marketers and economists need to know about a growing new economy and a primary requirement of life – food? “When we come together through education and discussion, we create synergy that allows us to develop revolutionary new ideas for sustainability in food production and to share market-oriented business strategies, agribusiness training and scientific research. This will lead us to technological solutions to the issues our industry faces,” said Dr Lyons. “As an industry and as good citizens,

we must address these issues now for the future generations who will inherit our world.” Alltech’s prestigious Medal of Excellence and Young Scientist Awards will also be presented during the Symposium. To learn more about the Alltech 28th Annual International Animal Health and Nutrition Symposium and to register to attend, visit www.alltech.com/symposium www.alltech.com/symposium or contact symposium@alltech.com. Additional details about speakers and sessions will be announced in the coming months.

Corn prices in US set to decline Corn prices, which averaged $6 per bushel in 2011, may decline in the next decade as US production begins to catch up with demand, according to reports. The average cash price is predicted to fall to $4.54 in the 2013 marketing year beginning September 1, then rise to $4.82 by 2022, according to analysts from the US Congressional Budget Office. Corn futures closed at $6.3175 per bushel on January 30 on the Chicago Board of Trade. Slower growth in the use of corn for ethanol is “giving trend corn production a chance to catch up and surpass demand growth,” said Keith Collins, a former US Department of Agriculture economist. Yield gains may not keep up with Congressional Budget Office predictions, and year-to-year variations in supply and demand may be greater than forecast. Corn use is expected to rise by 14% to 15.198 billion bushels by 2022. Production is predicted to rise 8.6%, to 15.19 billion bushels, as a 12% gain in yields absorbs a 42% hike in exports (to 2.63 billion bushels) and an 8.5% gain in ethanol use (to 5.425 billion bushels) by 2022, analysts predicted.

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

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NEWS Canada: Higher ethanol blends would hit livestock sector Policies designed to cut Canada’s emissions from fossil fuels have instead made the ethanol industry a “subsidised competitor” against the livestock sector, according to a new study from a well-known ag think tank. The George Morris Centre at Guelph, Ontario released a report by Senior Market Analyst Kevin Grier, Senior Research Associate Al Mussell and Analyst Irena Rajcan, urging the federal and provincial governments to reconsider their programs providing capital grants for additional ethanol plants and capacity. The policies and programs sustaining Canada’s ethanol industry must be “curtailed or eliminated,” the authors wrote, adding ethanol policy should not expand to require a 10% national blend. “Governments must recognise the significance of the Canadian livestock and meat industry, and that it is vulnerable to expansions in ethanol policy,” the study authors wrote. “Government has demonstrated that in a short time, it can create a large ethanol industry. The same cannot be said for the livestock and meat industry.” Specifically, the study finds Canadian ethanol production increases the price of feed grains in Eastern Canada by about $15 to $20 per tonne, and in the West by

$5 to $10 per tonne. That translates into tighter livestock feeding margins and/or increased losses for Canadian producers, totalling about $130 million per year, the study said. “We aren’t against high grain prices, but we want to compete on a level playing field,” said Travis Toews, President of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association, which along with the Canadian Pork Council and Canadian Meat Council co-funded the Morris Centre study. The cattle industry, Toews said, “fully appreciates how important a vibrant Canadian grain industry is to our sustainability” but the association also calls for the removal of ethanol subsidies and tariffs and the ethanol blending mandate. “This would let the market decide the best usage of feed grain in Canada,” he said in a separate release. Need to rationalise Ethanol production in this country, the study authors said, has resulted in lower feeder livestock prices for Canadian producers, meaning more feeder animals that could have been fed by Canadian producers were instead exported. The livestock sector in Canada’s East is particularly vulnerable, the study said, predicting that the expansion of mandatory

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ethanol content in gasoline to a 10% blend would lead to a “serious reduction” in feed availability there, and a “dramatic reduction” in cattle and hog feeding as a result. The ethanol industry is estimated to use about two million tonnes of grain corn in Ontario, which alone could impact local supply and demand enough to swing the price spread by about $17 per tonne, from a negative $10 to positive $7. Even if record corn production and imports are assumed, Eastern Canada’s cattle and hog sector “would need to rationalize by up to 40% to conform to available feed supplies” if ethanol were allowed a 10% mandate in fuel blends, the study said. Given that Prairie wheat and barley exports are about two times greater than feed use for those two crops in the West, the supply situation “does not make (the West’s) cattle and hog production vulnerable under a 10% mandate.” However, the study said, the West’s livestock industry would “continue to suffer under an increased price impact.” Limited inclusion The study authors blame such developments on the strengthening in the grain basis due to Canadian ethanol policy, rather than the world price of grain. It’s not that the use of mandates and subsidies to support ethanol development broadly boosts grain prices, the study said, but that it “increases relative grain prices in the local Canadian markets.” The study also disputes any claim that Canadian ethanol poses no threat to the livestock sector due to relatively lower grain prices in Ontario and Western Canada compared to those in the US during 2010 and 2011. Such a claim, the authors wrote, would be “simply based on a fortuitous increase in production relative to demand in Canada compared to the US” and besides, “even in these circumstances, the data and economic theory still demonstrate a negative livestock impact.” The study acknowledges production of distillers’ grains as a feed byproduct is “of material benefit in livestock feeding” and that the byproduct’s price has dropped as ethanol production rises – but the study also notes a “limited inclusion rate” for the byproduct. The Canadian Renewable Fuels Association had no official comment.

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NEWS Alltech appoints new Vice President for Europe Global animal health and nutrition company Alltech has announced the promotion of Patrick Charlton to the position of Vice President Europe. Mr Charlton has been with the company for 21 years, most recently serving as European Regional Director. He will take the reins from Marc Larousse who has been promoted to the position of Vice President Business Development. Commenting on the appointment, Alltech founder and President, Dr Pearse Lyons said, “Alltech is experiencing tremendous progress in Europe. “This region has been a vital part of Alltech’s core strategy for many years and now it is time for us to expand. “With Patrick’s considerable experience and leadership we are anticipating strong

growth and development throughout the Europe region.” Mr Charlton has worked extensively in Africa, Canada and the Middle East, and was also Global Bioplex Manager responsible for the Bioplex series of organic minerals. “European agriculture is changing rapidly in response to a growing export market and increased internal regulation and Alltech Europe must grow and expand to keep up with these developments,” said Mr Charlton. “We have a fantastic team in place with a firm devotion to the future of European agriculture, with un-paralleled knowledge and experience in the agriculture industry. Together we will further the development of new technologies, while continuing to meet the needs of local customers.”

Patrick Charlton, Alltech’s New Vice President Europe.

Novus appointed Regional Sales Manager, South Australia and Victoria Wayne Francis has joined Novus Nutrition Ltd as Regional Sales Manager, Australia. He will be responsible for the Regional sales activities mainly in Victoria and South Australia. Wayne has more than 20 years of experience in the vitamin and mineral premix industry and animal nutrition industry. His working life has always been involved in agriculture from 1981 to the the present. Wayne was employed by Agribusiness which was purchased by Provimi in the late 1990s. Agribusiness specialised in swine nutrition although most species were catered for; they also manufactured and

distributed vitamin and mineral additives. Over the years with Agribusiness and Provimi, his roles developed from being involved with the manufacture of the product to sales, developing business both domestically and internationally, managing sales as well as production and delivery. From 2003 onwards, Wayne remained in the agricultural industry primarily in management, business development and sales roles for livestock nutritional products, almond processing, and grain storage and packing. Wayne can be contacted at wayne.francis@novusint.com or mobile +614 1731 7963.

Wayne Francis, Regional Sales Manager, Novus Nutrition.

NZ Pork chief executive praised by Otago Daily New Zealand Pork Chief Executive Sam McIvor is leaving after nearly six years in the role. Board Chairman Ian Carter acknowledged Mr McIvor’s contribution to the industry during an “action-packed tenure”, during which there was a global economic crisis and, domestically, the industry had faced some big issues. “Championing the industry’s strong

environmental standing, progressing the animal welfare changes, and maintaining the industry’s disease-free status have been significant pieces of work, and Sam has shown strong leadership and the ability to work effectively with farmers through to politicians in this process,” Mr Carter said. Mr McIvor had also led value-chainwide initiatives focused on all parties working together to improve product quality

and drive consumer demand for locally produced product. There was no doubt consumers were much more aware now of the 700,000kg of imported pork coming into the country each week and they were looking for products labelled as New Zealand-grown. Mr McIvor, who leaves New Zealand Pork in mid-March, is joining family-owned Wellington meat business Preston’s.

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

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PRODUCT NEWS HelixX air washer for pig farms tests positive for energy reduction The new version of the decentral HelixX systems, manufactured and marketed by German livestock equipment company Big Dutchman, has received positive feedback from the German Agricultural Society (DLG). The new version has been confirmed to stand out in energy reduction. The DLG’s so-called ‘Signum’ tests confirmed the energy reduction claim. They showed that the new air washer system was certified to have an air washing capacity of around twice as high (volume flow of 17,500 m3/h) and it also reaches very profitable energy usage values. Andreas Kerssens, Product Manager, Big Dutchman, said, “The HelixX has now become a real alternative to external central air washers from a perspective of farm costs. This comes on top of already existing favourable investment costs.” This type of air washer system works without filling and filter material which leads to reduced maintenance costs. HelixX can be added to a pig house without external construction and subsequent external construction works and costs. On top of that, the decentral air washer has shown good results when it comes down to filtering dust and ammonia from the air. Figures by DLG show: “The dust emission reduction is 85%, and

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ammonia reduction is 87.5%.” “Apart from energy reduction we have also managed to reduce ammonia emissions,” Mr Kerssens said. In essence, HelixX consists of many nozzles on top of a spiral fan. The nozzles moisturise the emerging air, thus absorbing both dust and ammonia. The decentrally located air washer units are connected to each other as well as with the central water cleaning station. Every air washer unit works individually. This way, the operating costs, especially power costs for recirculation of the wash water, can be reduced to a minimum. The company’s product development team also considered security issues, as in the case of a power cut, natural thermical processes inside the chimney will continue to guarantee that a part of the air will still be transported outside. In addition, security fire valves, compulsory in at least some regions in Germany, can be adjusted inside the air channel. The German company writes in a press release: “For many pig producers in regions having a high livestock density, the supplementary air washer is one of the options to consider in order to continue business in the same location within the boundaries of the law.”

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Cost effective air washing using HelixX: The air washer for pig houses can easily be built in, inside existing chimneys. HelixX consists of many nozzles on top of a spiral fan.

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NEW PRODUCTS The 2012 Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship Dinner The late Ronald John Lienert, OAM is remembered for his significant contributions to the management of state and national industry agri-political issues: his membership of industry boards, committees and working parties. He established Lienert Australia Pty Ltd within agribusiness and displayed a visionary attitude to supporting new and practical pig research and his efforts in genetics resulted in a great improvement in the quality of the Australian pig herd. He displayed personal support for people making a start in the pig industry. The Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship program was struck with Adelaide University Roseworthy Campus to generate an Honours student program for pig R&D. Graeme Pope introduced last year’s inaugural scholarship winner Anthony Martynuik who described his findings into high fibre diets in gestating sows which lead to reduced aggression (by up to 75%). “I was well aware of the pressures in the industry to move towards group housing of pigs and how reducing aggression amongst sows was a key to increased profitability as well as better welfare outcomes,” Anthony said. Next Anthony is starting his Masters degree studies into ‘housing group lactation trials’ conducted at local commercial piggeries with a small pilot study at Roseworthy. “What I like most about working with pigs is that you get to see outcomes quickly and you can project the future based on your research,” Anthony explained. After Graeme Pope described the selection process for the 2012 winner, whereby a committee interviewed applicants who had to display academic merit and a real interest in the pig industry and the ability to create a relevant research enterprise. Ronald Lienert’s son Nick Lienert, now the Managing Director of Lienert Australia Pty Ltd, announced the winner of The 2012 Ronald J Lienert Memorial Scholarship. Emma Greenwood, a student supervised by Dr Bob Hughes, stated that not only was she comfortable working with pigs but that when organising her studies diary any day involving pigs was circled as an event to be celebrated.

“I particularly enjoy farm work and have benefited from my time on Jimmy and Rhonda Davis’s operation,” she said. Emma will be working with Dr Paul Hughes focusing on late gestation (last four weeks) and an extra feed study also outcomes from lower and high levels of hygiene. She will be conducting her research at Roseworthy. Top: Graeme Pope talks to this year’s winner of the 2012 Ronald J Lienert Memroial Scholarship, Emma Greenwood. Right: Nick Lienert, MD of Lienert Australia.

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NEWS v

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6 He explained the importance of improving overall herd feed conversion ratios (HFCR). Critical factors were avoiding feed wastage with optimal feeder design, maintaining temperature control through good ventilation and paying attention to immune function, the ‘big sleeper’ in the arrangement,” Mr Edwards said. “The value of maintaining hygiene, good biosecurity and vaccination is hard to access but certainly significant,” he said. “Genetic improvement is fundamental, as is the adoption of current proven technology, improved overall and feed management and finally, removing market imposed restraints on the use of key products like Paylean,” he concluded. Dr Eugeni Roura from the University of Queensland in his paper ‘Latest research on feed preference and intake ingredient choices, manipulating intake and feed efficiency’ spoke on the umani (or savouriness) effect in livestock diets. His work is included in the Pork CRC program 1B. Dr Roger Campbell CEO of the Pork CRC next reported on ‘Grain processing and feed efficiency, the biggest factors in how well pigs use feed.’ Quoting Dr Mike Gidley from Queensland University, “how a grain is processed will have a bigger effect on energy than the actual grain used,” Dr Campbell revealed. Test results on particle size of sorghum and barley and advantages of using disc mills instead of roller mills were also discussed. “Lupins can be useful in diets if you grind them and sorghum has the highest DE levels but worst feed efficiency,” and finally Dr Campbell concluded, “how your grain is processed is going to have a major effect.” The final session of the seminar was the APL marketing update delivered by Liam Silk, Senior Brand Manager at APL and Peter Smith, Marketing Manager at APL Liam stated that not only had there been more fresh pork demand but also an increase in inclusion of Australian pork in the processed sector. The Christmas period, in particular, had been good for the industry. “This and other factors like producers being able to build production to meet demand had resulted in an increase of $44 million to profits in 2011,” he said. “Consumer recall of pork advertising was running at more than 65% of consumers and recall of the Pork logo was

PORK JOURNAL, Jan/Feb 2012

PI • • • Above: Roger Campbell, CEO of the Pork CRC was interviewed live for the ABC’s Country Hour program. Left: Neil Gannon (right) who has recently joined Biomin chats to growers at the South Australian Pig Industry Day.

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•M

up from 24% to 45%,” he added. “Winning in retail – a butcher’s battle plan, another APL initiative to hold and improve retail butcher’s market against supermarket domination, was also showing signs of success,” Liam revealed. Much of Peter Smith’s talk was devoted to strategies for the industry if fresh imports are allowed to enter Australia and how the industry can prepare for such an eventuality. “Up to 40% of consumers buy on price and imports are estimated to undercut local production by around 15%, leading to a volume loss of between 15% to 35%,” he stated. “The APL strategy is to ‘defend, delay and differentiate’. Layers of armour will be required that includes developing brands, customer tailored pigs, and developing individual producer relationships with retailers and consumers. “If the import threat doesn’t eventuate we can use the capability to attack rival

protein suppliers,” he concluded. Following the seminar was the ‘Trade partnership program from 4 to 6 pm. Company representatives had the opportunity to present short information sessions to small groups of growers and students. This session worked well with growers being able to access information on animal health, building and shed equipment, breeding and genetics as well as pig nutrition. The South Australian Pig Industry Day was without doubt a great success and a credit to the organisers and seminar participants – the grower turnout in particular was exceptional. Apart from Pork Journal being in attendence representatives from The Stock Journal and ABC radio Country Hour were on hand. Dr Roger Campbell and Greg Bisset were interviewed by the ABC live for a national audience.

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