Cargill UK has recruited Clare Gaukroger for its pig team as research coordinator for the UK. Based in North Yorkshire, Dr Gaukroger has established trials and is managing data collection, analysis and interpretation for a wide range of projects on the company’s two UK reference farms.
These pig units are equipped with trial facilities and are designed to reflect commercial UK farms, with one site focusing on weaner pig performance whilst the second will look at challenges and solutions in commercial grower finisher systems.
After gaining a first class honours degree in animal science from Newcastle University, Dr Gaukroger spent a year as a swine technical specialist for Anpario before returning to Newcastle University to undertake a PhD in gut microbiota development in piglets and its relationship on performance.
She also won the President’s Prize at the British Society of Animal Science conference in 2016, and was a speaker on piglet gut health at EuroTier in Germany in the same year and was also awarded a travel grant to present at the International Symposium on digestive physiology of pigs in Australia in 2018.
“The pig industry is facing some real challenges, particularly with the impending ban on the therapeutic use of zinc oxide in diets and the drive to reduce antibiotic usage,” said Dr Gaukroger. “We also have to keep pace with genetic advances and strive to achieve the animal’s potential by optimising nutritional programmes and management techniques.”
The projects underway at the Cargill UK reference farms focus on the interaction of nutrition, management and environment.
“We will exchange results from our work with Cargill’s global research teams, but it is particularly important that our findings here in the UK are used in tailoring new product and service developments to meet the needs of the UK industry,” she adds. “This will help our customers to improve productivity in a sustainable and cost-effective way.”
