Producers sending pigs to abattoirs certified to export to China will now be required to use updated export certificates.

The new documentation, which came into effect on July 1 and will also affect vets and abattoirs, includes a declaration that the ‘pig herd is currently free of official disease restrictions due to notifiable disease of pigs’.

Producers must also confirm that there has no bovine TB (bTB) on the farm for at least six months. The new declarations have prompted concerns within the pig industry about possible uncertainty and delays, particularly where bTB was suspected but not confirmed, a not uncommon occurrence as it can take months to confirm cases in pigs.

Responding to queries from the National Pig Association (NPA), APHA confirmed that it would not be seeking retrospective certification under the new certificates.

Any meat processed prior to July 1 would have been certified under the conditions in place at the time and it would be ‘disproportionate and impractical’ not to grant the relevant certification, the agency said.

APHA also clarified the situation with suspect bTB cases. If bTB is suspected at post mortem examination, this triggers the imposition of TB restrictions, ‘making the pigs from that herd ineligible for slaughter for export to China until the matter is resolved’. The 7006ANNB and 7006ANNC declarations ‘cannot be signed until at least the culture returns back with negative results’, the agency said.

“If a herd is under TB restrictions, any pigs dispatched to the abattoir must be accompanied by a General or Specific TB licence. The OV at the abattoir therefore will be aware if the pigs are coming from a restricted herd,” APHA said.

NPA chairman Richard Lister said it was essential anyone who sends pigs to abattoirs that export to China are aware of the changes and acts on them. “This also highlights again the need for proportionate measures that reduce the time pig units are kept under TB restriction,” he said.

In summary:

7006ANNA is the updated vet declaration and vets will start using this as the current quarterly certificates expire.

7006ANNB is the updated owner-manager declaration and needs to be used by all farmers supplying China-certified abattoirs. No pigs will be accepted from July 1 without the updated version.

7006ANNC needs to be filled in by the producer and supplied to their vet as soon as possible to enable the vet to sign the updated vet declaration as they expire.

Unitron, which was based near Diss and run by well-known industry figure Ian Campbell for many years, supplies AI equipment, including catheters, cabinets and pregnancy scanners. Other products include teeth and tail products, marking sprays and the Unifeeder automatic creep feeder.

Mrs Houston said: “We are delighted to be taking on Ian’s business, which has built up a very strong reputation over the years. We are also very grateful that Ian will be working with us, initially, to ensure a smooth a transition.”

H2I can be contacted on: 01473 785 319 sales@h2I.uk.com

Production reached 74,300 tonnes during the month, up 1% compared with the same month in 2016, due to higher throughputs of clean pigs and sows. The increase occurred despite falling carcase weights.

May saw 870,800 clean pigs slaughtered, 83,300 more than in April and nearly 1% higher than a year earlier. Clean pig carcase weights have been declining for the past few months and this typical seasonal trend continued into May with the average weight coming in at 82.1kg. This is a further 900g lighter than the month before, although 600g heavier than in May last year.

Sow slaughterings increased slightly month on month, to 19,300, although the longer-term downward trend persists. The figure is 7% below that seen in May 2016 and further supports the view that stability is gradually coming into the breeding herd.

Tight supplies continue to drive high prices with the Standard Pig Price of nearly 162p/kg for the week ending June 17 more than 40p higher than the equivalent week in 2016.

GB slaughterings appeared to confirm the tight supply situation, despite the May figures. For the week ended June 17, they were estimated at 161,100, down by 4,200 compared on the previous week, and the lowest throughput since Easter. Compared to a year earlier they were down by 6,600 head, or 4%

Producers who send pigs to abattoirs certified to export to China will need to change to the updated versions from July 1, 2017. The updated certificates can be viewed and downloaded by clicking on the links, below:

7006ANNA is the updated vet declaration and vets will start using this as the current quarterly certificates expire.

7006ANNB is the updated owner manager declaration and needs to be used by all farmers supplying China certificated abattoirs. No pigs will be accepted from July 1 without the updated version.

7006ANNC needs to be filled in by the producer and supplied to their vet as soon as possible to enable the vet to sign the updated vet declaration as they expire.

NPA chairman Richard Lister said it was very important that anyone who sends pigs to abattoirs that might be destined for export to China is aware of the changes and acts on them.

Professor Wall, from University College Dublin and a former chair of the European Food Standards Authority, delivered a highly entertaining speech on the second day of Pigs 2022 that also contained numerous pearls of wisdom for delegates.

He urged the pig industry to think more about what it could do to tap into the growing global demand for food that delivers nutritional and health benefits. He urged the industry to take control of the debate about the health implications of eating pork, which is currently all-too-often driven by scare stories about certain bugs, antibiotic use and the supposed negative long-term health effects of consuming products.

Among the memorable phrases delivered throughout his presentation, he told delegates: “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.”

He added: “You are part of the human health business.”

Prof Wall cited the work done by feed company Devenish in producing chicken rich in Omega 3 as an example of what is achievable.

He used the analogy of pigs diets at different stages of production are targeted with the very different dietary formulations to aid their health and general wellbeing. The food industry, which he said does little to differentiate beyond baby food, should aim to do the same for human diets, with particular scope, he suggested, to create food, and possibly pork products, with traits that help reduce some of the problems associated with ageing.

Forge you own future

Earlier the conference heard the story of the recent entry of Sir James’ Dyson’s Beeswax Farms onto the farming landscape. Richard Williamson, managing director of the company, which owns thousands of acres of farmland in Lincolnshire and the Cotswolds.

He outlined the importance of getting the culture right within a farming business in order to succeed and also highlighted the need for the farming industry to do more to forge its own future, rather than wait for someone else to do it.

“Everybody seems to be waiting for something to happen. At the NFU conference, which was a great event, people were harping on about: “Wouldn’t it be great to know what was going to happen? Wouldn’t it be great to have a plan? How can we run our business without this kind of guidance from Government?” “I just don’t buy it, to be honest.”

He outlined how his company has produced its own strategy that will factor in a likely reduction in support post-Brexit.

“We will have to make some changes but our strategy is: We want ‘X’ amount of land by a certain time in certain areas, we want to be a force for good in agriculture and we want ‘X’ return on capital and ‘X’ uplift in land value. It’s not that complicated.”

Innovation

The theme of the day was very much innovation and delegates also heard a detailed summary of research findings from an EU-wide project about the most effective and cost-effective ways to reduce antibiotic usage on pig farms.

There were dedicated break-out sessions on the ‘Sow of the Future’, including a look at the latest technology and also the barriers associated with freedom farrowing, and on ‘Meat of the Future’, including the issues around boar taint.

Further sessions included talks on the latest technology available for ‘monitoring and utilising real time growth and FCR data’ and the issues around ‘designing a handling system outdoors’.

• For full coverage of the event, staged by Pig World and AHDB Pork, look out for the July edition of Pig World.

Opening the successful Pigs 2022 conference in front if more than 200 delegates in Solihull, he said: “A priority for us all is to understand what our competitors are doing, where they are innovating, where they are investing and what technologies they are adopting.

“This is about making sure that none of our competitors is successful in trying to eat our lunch; it’s about making sure we take advantage of the latest thinking, wherever it originates.

“Having understood what is going on elsewhere, that knowledge is only useful if we act here in our industry and that action requires courage, speed and imagination.”

For more on day one, click here

For full coverage of the event, staged by Pig World and AHDB Pork, see the July edition of Pig World.

New initiatives include a human resources toolkit to help pig businesses and managers train and motivate staff and a new online skills recording system.

AHDB skills development officer Samantha Bowsher said: “Quite often pig producers do not have a dedicated HR function or the chance to train staff in-house. By making use of our HR toolkit, we can provide cost effective training sessions across practical pig production and leadership topics to support stock people, managers and owners.”

Another new offering this year will be Pig Pro, set to go live in September, which will provide farmers with a more simple and flexible way of recording staff skills. Accessed through AHDB’s online Pig Hub, the new system is the result of a 12-month consultation with industry members.

“We are confident it will be welcomed and will prove to be a valuable recording tool for businesses of all sizes,” Ms Bowsher said.

“In any business, a well-trained and motivated workforce is key to its success, and the farming industry is no exception. Each member of staff contributes to the productivity and profitability of the business, therefore recruiting, retaining and rewarding the right people is vital.

“Pig production is an increasingly technical business, requiring highly trained staff to ensure the English industry remains competitive.

Within pig production, we quite often say that you cannot manage what you don’t measure. I think this should also be extended to staff development and skills.

“The process around skills management within a business should be identifying skill levels and skill gaps, providing appropriate training and then reviewing the impact of this and identifying what the next steps should be.

“To develop the industry and get the very best out of people is why AHDB Pork has created resources within our HR toolkit, such as the appraisal template and skills matrix – all of which should be staples in any pig business.

“Providing staff with the opportunity to attend training sessions and increase their knowledge and skills is not only positive for their development, it also proves to be very motivational. And by making an investment in your staff, you not only create a happier and more productive workforce, it will also have a positive impact on your bottom line. This has to be a win-win for everyone.”

AHDB Pork had its largest presence ever at the show, taking an entire block in the extensive meat halls and its stand featured the three companies approved to export to China – Karro, Cranswick and Tulip.

Speaking at a British pork dinner for exporters and their customers in Shanghai, AHDB strategy director Mick Sloyan said China had become the most important market for British pork exports.

He said: “2016 was a record year for trade with China. We exported pork and pork offal worth a staggering £74 million. This is nearly twice the value of exports of Scotch whisky.

“In the first three months of this year, exports have grown further and although market conditions are a little challenging at this moment, we look forward to another good year that is adding significant value to the British pig industry.”

Coexca SA has joined forces with the Danish Agribusiness Fund (DAF) in a $12m equity deal that will enable the Chilean producer to double its output.

The agreement, finalised in Copenhagen this week, marks the largest of its kind for the Chilean pork sector, already a major pork exporter, and will ‘significantly expand Coexca’s production and strengthen its offering to customers domestically and abroad’, according to the parties involved.

Coexca SA chief executive officer Guillermo Garcia Gonzalez said the agreement with DAF and Edinburgh-based agricultural investment firm, JB Equity, which facilitated the deal, represented an ‘exciting new stage of development’ for the company.

“Our union with DAF and JB Equity will allow us to double Coexca’s current pork production capacity and establish a new and modern pig farm in the Maule Region of Chile,” Mr Garcia said.

Coexca is a leading pork producer in Chile, exporting its products to more than 33 countries, with a significant portion attributed to Asian markets. It has turnover of over $85m and employs more than 500 people, with sales offices in Asia and Europe.

The DAF combines private and public investment to ‘improve food production in developing countries’, with backing from the Danish Government.

DAF vice president for Latin America Helle Bjerre said: “Coexca is a good example of what cooperative and progressive farmers and processors can achieve by working with institutional investors who understand their industry.”

Chile has the highest pork meat consumption in Latin America with close to 22kg consumed per person per year. It is already the sixth-largest pork exporter in the world due, according to the press release announcing the deal, to Chile’s focus on trade, significant industry re-investment, product safety and improvements in technology.

JB Equity, which focuses exclusively on agribusiness and agri-technology, will join the company as a shareholder. Its chief investment officer Hamish Webb said the transaction represented a ‘perfect union’ between one of Chile’s leading pork producers and one of Europe’s most experienced agricultural investors.