06 April 2022 – When looking at piglet and sow health, it can be tempting to view these as two different concepts given that mother and progeny face vastly different production challenges.
However, during gestation and in the three to four weeks before weaning, a piglet’s health is invariably linked to that of its mother. According to Chr. Hansen, sow health is one of the biggest factors that can address piglet performance at weaning and impact its growth and development. In short, strong and healthy sows produce strong and healthy piglets.
With its new probiotic solution, SolPreme®, the company has explored this concept and takes aim at a sow’s gastrointestinal microbiology to boost both her and her piglet’s health and performance. It is also seeing the two-strain product – which Chr. Hansen is promoting as the first of its kind on the market – as a sustainable, eco-conscious way for farmers to address sow performance issues, like lactational weight loss and reduce non-productive days, and control pathogens of concern in sucking and weaned piglets, like E. coli and Clostridia.
In this Industry Perspectives, Chr. Hansen’s Said El Bohdidi, Technical Sales Manager for the EMEA region shares more details on the impact SolPreme® can have on sow health and how this can lead to better performing piglets and benefit some of the industry’s main sustainability worries.
[Feedinfo] In terms of sustainability, what has Chr. Hansen identified as the key areas of concern in pig production?
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[Said El Bohdidi] Sustainability is a broad term covering many different aspects. Animal welfare is one of them, and one of the key areas of concern facing animal welfare is the EU’s ban of ZnO in piglet diets, that comes into force in June this year. Farmers in some European countries are still heavily dependent on the use of ZnO in their animal’s diets and will experience challenges in controlling post-weaning diarrhoea once the ban comes into effect. The industry has been looking for solutions for a long time and has accepted that there is no silver bullet. Several strategies will need to be used, of which the inclusion of probiotics is one. |
Said El BohdidiAnother concern is antibiotic resistance. This has had an impact on pig production and in the EU we have been monitoring the progress of antibiotic use for years. Farmers have done a great job in lowering the need for these therapies by changing management strategies and feed formulations, for example. Feed additives, such as probiotics, are playing an increasing role in managing intestinal health, with research showing that they can have a direct effect on pathogens, enhance gut barrier functions and stimulate the mucosal immune system.
[Feedinfo] Looking at the entire production process, how big of a puzzle piece are sows in helping producers drive sustainability initiatives? Why is the sow such an asset here?
[Said El Bohdidi] It’s all connected. Bringing sustainability into the sow unit can be related to animal welfare and maintaining a sustainable business. Replacing sows is a costly approach, especially if the sow is lost right before farrowing. So being able to keep sow mortality - or the replacement of sows - at low levels will have an impact on the bottom line. We estimate that each removed sow can cost the farmer in the region of €800 to €1,000.
Looking at the animal welfare aspect, the environment the suckling piglets are born into has an impact on their well-being and performance, not just in the farrowing crate but also throughout the nursery period. By ensuring a good environment with a low pathogen load for the suckling piglets right after birth will give them a better start in life. Data on our new sow and piglet probiotic product, SolPreme® has shown that when fed to sows, the bacillus spores can be found in her faecal matter. This means that the piglets will be exposed to the beneficial probiotic bacteria from birth.
[Feedinfo] Let’s talk a bit more about SolPreme and the other ways it can help producers sustainably ensure the productivity of their sows. How can a probiotic impact key concerns, like body condition, lactation weight loss, etc.?
[Said El Bohdidi] Probiotics in the diets of weaned piglets have been used for decades, whereas adoption into sow diets has taken a little longer. Research done with SolPreme® has shown that when added to the diets of sows, not only did the piglets benefit from it but also the sows. One of the recurring reasons to replace sows is due to failed conception or lack of a visible estrus. This can occur if the body condition of the sow is not optimal, which will negatively affect the number of non-productive days. During lactation sows lose weight, however keeping an eye on the body score is important, as a clear heat can be difficult to detect if the sow is too thin. Besides that, extra feed is needed to bring her back to optimal body condition at an additional cost.
The research done on SolPreme® showed that when added to the diets of sows, the weight loss during lactation was lower by 4.33kg and the number of non-productive days by 0.36 days. All in all, this has a positive impact of €4per year per sow for the farmer.
[Feedinfo] You are also putting forward SolPreme® as a means to help with greater uniformity in piglets. Why is it so important for producers to manage this properly?
[Said El Bohdidi] A lack of uniformity costs €1/pig for every 1% coefficient of variation (CV)improvement at slaughter. This is pretty substantial. Uniformity in weight amongst a batch of pigs is often only looked at when speaking about finishers. Having an optimal weight when sent to slaughter optimises the revenue for the farmer, whereas pigs that are too light or too heavy do not obtain optimal price.
On the uniformity matter, piglets and pigs are connected. When speaking about piglets, uniformity is not often thought of. However, it is something that is part of everyday routines when working with pigs. Right from birth, litters are sorted after weight – smaller piglets are sorted from heavier ones. It’s important to highlight this for several reasons. The most obvious one being that sorting pigs requires labour and extra work. Often the smaller piglets, especially in nursery, require a special diet, which is more expensive. Or the diet that they are fed is not fitted to their development stage, so they don’t get the most out of it.
On top of this, literature shows that the deviation in weight detected early in life follows a group of pigs throughout growth.
Focusing on uniformity from birth and throughout nursery will no doubt have a positive effect once the finisher pig is sent to slaughter. In fact, a recent meta-analysis showed that standard deviation at slaughter can be predicted by the standard deviation at weaning or end nursery. The variation in weight is often expressed as the CV and calculations show a reduction of 1% in CV at a fixed weight at end nursery can save the farmer around €0,3/pig at slaughter. SolPreme® has been shown to be very effective when it comes to increasing the uniformity within the litter at weaning or within the pen at the end of nursery and can lead to a saving of €0,4/nursery pig.
[Feedinfo] You mentioned ZnO reduction as a key sustainability concern earlier. Is this an area where SolPreme® can be of help?
[Said El Bohdidi] Piglet gut integrity can be tricky to establish as there are many parameters affecting it. As mentioned earlier, management and feed have played a big role in this. SolPreme® is a reliable solution to support optimal gut integrity. Focusing on having robust and uniform piglets at weaning will have a positive effect on how the piglets start the nursery phase. The combined modes of action of the two strains of SolPreme® are key features. It has been carefully selected for its effect on pathogens often occurring both pre- and post-weaning, like E. coli and Clostridia, as well as its effect on intestinal integrity, such as tight junctions and villi height.
In relation to the reduction of high levels of ZnO, SolPreme® is a strong element to have in the nutritional toolbox. However, it’s important to stress that there is no one-to-one replacement of ZnO as of today, but several initiatives must be taken at farm level. Also, if a farm experiences an outbreak of diarrhoea caused by E. coli, for example, a vet needs to be involved.
[Feedinfo] If I have it correct, you are currently only launching SolPreme® in Europe. How does the product support Chr. Hansen’s overall strategy for swine on the continent? How do you foresee it performing?
[Said El Bohdidi] BioPlus® YC remains our main probiotic product for pigs in Europe supporting performance such as feed conversion ratio (FCR) and average daily gain (ADG), especially in piglets. Times are changing fast these days. The new reality for producers is becoming stricter, especially when talking about sustainability, which includes animal welfare and antibiotic use reduction. SolPreme® completes our all-natural product portfolio as it is developed for the health challenges producers are facing today. With SolPreme® we now have a portfolio of probiotics that targets the different challenges and needs those producers are facing.
[Feedinfo] What else can we expect from Chr. Hansen in the swine nutrition space? Do you think there is more that probiotics can offer here?
[Said El Bohdidi] The modes of action of probiotics are many and researchers are still exploring the opportunities and benefits of adding them to the feed of animals. On top of that, synergies between different feed additives are also investigated.
If we look to grower-finisher pigs FCR and ADG are important. Especially in times where feed prices are high. Bacilli produce enzymes as part of their life cycle which increases the nutrient pool available to the pig. Utilising this to reformulate diets can result in substantial feed cost savings. We are on top of this to support our customers.
Another topic that falls under the sustainability umbrella is the environment. A better utilisation of the feed, especially protein, leads to lower nitrogen emissions. Something that is getting a lot of attention by the industry.
Learn more about the Modes of Action of Probiotics
Published in association with Chr. Hansen
