GLOBALPIG A. CABEZAS: “WITH THE NI-2 WE PREVENT ANIMALS SEEKING THE HEAT OF THE SOW AT BIRTH AND DIE BY CRUSHING” The Industrial Farm, located in Artesa de Segre (Lleida) and owned by the Premier Pigs group, has 3,000 sows and 6,800 weaning places.
Álvaro with the person in charge of the Industrial Farm, in Artesa de Segre (Lleida). Photo: Rotecna.
Since the acquisition in 2010 by the Premier Pigs group of the Industrial Farm located in Artesa de Segre (Lleida), Álvaro Cabezas, head of the group’s team of sow and fattening veterinarians, has lived through the evolution of this farm. After the last improvement in farrowing pens done last year, Premier Pigs decided to install the Ni-2 of Rotecna for the good results obtained with this product in a newly built farm. Cabezas highlights its handling ease, a lower number of crush casualties, the creation of a comfort zone for piglets and energy savings. When did you decide to go into farming? I studied veterinary medicine in Córdoba, and in the third year, I decided that I wanted to get into livestock production professionally. So, I started doing internships and working in nearby farms, first in Andalusia, and then I moved to Catalonia, where I settled. 10
What are the origins of this farm located in Artesa de Segre? This farm was bought by the Premier Pigs group in 2010, with 900 sows and 7,000 fattening places. Since then, it has been renewed and transformed little by little to remove the fattening places and reach the current capacity of 3,000 sows and 6,800 weaning places. How is the farm distributed? Taking advantage of the old and newly built warehouses, the farm has a quarantine area for gilt rearing, an adaptation and coverage area for gilts, a multiparous covering area, the confirmed gestation zone, the calving warehouses and a transition zone. How many people work here? There is a team of 13 people; the person in charge of the farm, the person in charge of farrowing, the person in charge of gestation, the person responsible for weaning and the rest of the team, which act as a reinforcement in the different areas. In addition, there is a veterinarian who supports the farm every week and carries out a follow-up control of the technical and sanitary data.