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12/04/08
Salmonella platinum awards to be launched at Pig Fair
The first Platinum Pig Awards for pig units with low levels of salmonella will be announced at British Pig and Poultry Fair. The new awards are designed to act as an incentive to all pig-keepers to cut salmonella in the national herd to ten percent, or less.
To win a platinum award a unit will have to be under ten percent for a year, as shown by positive and suspect reports from the new Zoonoses National Control Programme, which was introduced this month.
Since the Zoonoses Action Plan (ZAP) started in 2002 the aim has been to reduce the risk to consumers from salmonella in pigmeat products.
The target was to reduce the proportion of finisher pigs testing positive to the meat-juice salmonella test and thereby reduce the prevalence of salmonella in the national herd.
The scheme has failed. The level of meat-juice salmonella positive results has not fallen. So the Zoonoses National Control Programme has been introduced in its place.
Zoonoses National Control Programme Q&As
Why is the Zoonoses National Control Programme being introduced now?
The European Union will be setting targets for reduction of salmonella in pigs. ZAP was not working and was unlikely to be approved by the European Union as a national control programme. When national targets have been set the new Zoonoses National Control Programme scheme will have to be submitted to Europe for approval. The British pig industry is committed to reducing the risk to consumers from salmonella in pigmeat products bearing the Quality Standard Mark. Progress in reducing risk will be monitored by checking the prevalence of salmonella on carcases in abattoirs. Processors and producers working together will drive improvements.
How will abattoirs monitor salmonella in the supply chain?
Abattoirs are already taking measures to reduce the prevalence of salmonella on pig carcases and monitoring effectiveness through swabbing carcases. Abattoirs also have access to the salmonella prevalence of their producers through the Zoonoses National Control Programme database and electronic Food Chain Information forms.
How will the change affect my ZAP status?
From the start of this month ZAP 1,2,3 disappeared. All finishing units will be sent a new style report and the focus will be to reduce their rolling annual salmonella prevalence and to aim for an on-farm prevalence of below 10 percent.
If ZAP categories are disappearing will I still receive a report?
From May, Zoonoses National Control Programme reports will be sent every four months - January to April, May to August and September to December - showing the results for those four months and the rolling 12 months. The sampling will change to four samples from all sites supplying finisher pigs to British Quality Assured Pork abattoirs. Producers, vets and abattoirs will continue to have internet access to the latest results.
If ZAP categories are disappearing will I still need an action plan?
From this month ALL finishing pig units are required to have a Salmonella Control Plan and to regularly review their salmonella management. Farms have six months to develop and start implementation of their control plans. The control plan can incorporate salmonella controls into revised hygiene and management procedures and this should help control other diseases as well.
Where can I find an example of an acceptable control plan?
There is no definitive plan but a suggested checklist will be sent with all Zoonoses National Control Programme reports in May and will also be available from Zoonoses National Control Programme co-ordinator Veronica Wright.
Are there suggested publications with advice for on-farm actions against salmonella?
Yes, the Food Standards Agency has produced a booklet and DVD, “Serious about salmonella – back to basics”. And a series of Zoonoses National Control Programme information leaflets will be published through this year, and will be available from Veronica.
Will my farm assurance status be under threat if I don’t reduce my salmonella prevalence?
All sites should undertake a detailed review of their meat-juice Elisa results and their Salmonella Control Plan at least once a year. There will not be sanctions for failing to reduce salmonella but farm assured sites will have to demonstrate that they are taking action to control salmonella.
• If you have any queries regarding the Zoonoses National Control Programme, contact Veronica Wright, 01908 844331, veronica.wright@bpex.org.uk
Mass gassing of pigs fear
Up to 25,000 weaners a week could be taken to a central point, gassed, and sent to a rendering plant, claims Andrew Dickson, general manager of Manitoba Pork Council. The crisis is emerging because some United States finishers are breaking their contracts with Canadian weaner-producers. They are worried they will not be able to sell the pigs as "Produced in the United States" when new country-of-origin labelling legislation takes effect in the States in September.
Pig health with a practical slant
Pig producers of all sizes will benefit from veterinarian Bob Stevenson’s workshop ‘Practical Pig Health for Smaller Producers’ at British Pig and Poultry Fair, May 13 and 14. This workshop will reinforce the theme of maintaining the health of pigs, with a very practical slant.
Bob Stevenson is consultant veterinarian to the British Pig Association. During a long career working with farm animals, he has taken an increasing interest in pigs becoming president of the Pig Veterinary Society before being elevated to the position of head of the British Veterinary Association in 1996. His interest in the pig as a species has run parallel with a desire to impart information to both veterinary and agricultural students.
He has taught at various agricultural colleges and was an examiner for the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons’ Pig Veterinary Certificate. More recently his interest has shifted from involvement with the larger pig producers to the keeper of usually smaller numbers of pure-bred pigs. He has recently completed a country-wide round of workshops for the keepers of pure-bred pigs, promoting the prevention of disease and the maximising of pig health.
British Pig and Poultry Fair New Product Award: entry form can be downloaded here.
British Pig and Poultry Fair will host the "Great Feed Debate"
Seakers in the “Great Feed Debate” at British Pig and Poultry Fair, May 13-14 will include Sue Corning, chief executive of PIC, Andrew Carter, senior buying manager at Tesco and Finn Cottle, marketing director of Noble Foods. "We all need to co-operate in a very simple way - that is, have a common goal,” said Sue Corning.
“We know it is possible to make a difference to the end product when there is a common objective that the whole supply chain supports and is working towards. There are huge opportunities within breeding lines to select for meat quality characteristics, for example, without reducing production efficiencies, or raising costs."
On the poultry front, Finn Cottle said the underlying theme of the “Great feed Debate” is to add value to commodity products and to understand what consumers want. She believes a key message for poultry producers is that free range is a massive opportunity and producers could look at ways of expanding and diversifying.
Pig and Poultry Fair event manager Alice Bell said, “We are putting the spotlight on retailers and processors this year to drive home the message that the whole food supply chain has to work together to meet changing demands and add value to increase returns for everybody."
11/04/08
Traffic Lights
The market has been unsettled by a reduction of 0.8p in a major contract buyer's base price, coupled with some pigs being rolled. Traffic Lights Commentary.
'Buy up more pork' plea from United States producers
United States pig producers have asked the Department of Agriculture to buy up more pigmeat, to help stabilise prices.
The Department is empowered by law to do this, to support non-farm programme commodities such as beef and pork. The food is used in federal nutrition programmes, for instance in school lunches and prisons.
"Additional Section 32 purchases would help the pork industry at this critical time," said Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, the largest farm organisation in the States.
His request comes at a time when prices for live market pigs have plunged to levels not seen in nearly a decade.
Reduced supply
Danish slaughterer Tican is planning job cuts in response to an expected 15 percent cut in its pig supply from next month.
New BPEX website will drill down into DAPP
From Monday producers will be able to get more information about the DAPP. Monday is when the new 
website goes live. In addition to a tickertape display showing DAPP, it will give — for the first time — the top and bottom 20 percent of prices.
Minister asks supermarkets for help
Scotland rural affairs minister Richard Lochhead has persuaded the British Retail Consortium to ask its members if they can join with caterers, processors and wholesalers to look at further discussion on the long-term sustainable future of the pig sector. Richard Lochhead has also written directly to retailers to ask what they are doing to help support the future of the Scottish pig sector.
Vehicle Excise Duty
NFU has clarified the proposed Vehicle Excise Duty regarding large vehicles and 4x4s, and how much the proposed hike in costs will be.
Vehicles registered before March 2001 will largely be unaffected, increasing only by £15 in 2009, and by indexation from 2010. With effect from April 2009, vehicles registered after March 2001 will be reformed into new Vehicle Excise Duty bands.
In 2009/2010 the Vehicle Excise Duty on vehicles – registered between March 2001 and March 2006 – with CO2 emissions over 255g/km will increase from £210 to £440, and up to £455 in 2010. Those vehicles registered after March 2006 are already paying £300 Vehicle Excise Duty.
Given that the average Landrover Defender has C02 emissions of 280g/km, a large proportion of work vehicles will fall into this new banding, and as the proposals stand, if registered between March 2001 and March 2006, will be subject to a large hike in duty.
Also due to be introduced from April 2010 is the ‘showroom’ tax, which means a first year Vehicle Excise Duty rate of £950 for all high emission vehicles.
The NFU is concerned that measures largely aimed at 'Chelsea tractors' are retrospectively going to be applied. It is currently investigating the proposed system, and whether there are any practical alternatives that could improve the situation for works vehicles.
Discount on pesticide publications
NFU members can approach British Crop Production Council directly for a 20 percent discount on publications. So for example the UK Pesticide Guide - all the info on pesticides in one book, as carried everywhere by agronomists - would be about £8 less than list price.
BOOM-TIME ON BRITISH PIG UNITS?
Increasingly producers are reporting dramatically improved productivity (often with the rider "Just at the time when we didn't want it!"). Is this improvement common across the national herd, and if so what are the key drivers? I would like to take a snapshot of the picture across the country. Therefore I would be most grateful if producers, managers, vets etc will complete the very brief questionnaire above. I won't publish your name (or at least not unless I specifically ask your permission first). — DS
UPDATE I am grateful to those who have taken the time to fill in the form so far, particularly as it may take some time to do. The results so far have been painfully honest and show that although there may be a trend upwards, improved productivity is by no means apparent across the whole of the national herd. Pork Chain Solutions has offered to look at the data collected through the Pig Focus recording system and to add to the results by letting me have some merged figures (so that no individuals are identified). Favourite reason given so far by a contributor to the snapshot: "Hard work and the boss keeping out of the way."Favourite occupation given so far: "President of football club". (Who could that be, then?)
10/04/08
Grants up to £10,000
If you farm in one of the water catchment areas shown on the map above, you could pull down up to £10,000 in grant aid towards a wide range of capital equipment and works.
Eligible items include roofs for slurry and silage stores, concrete yard renewal, rainwater storage tanks, relocation of gates, yard works for clean/dirty water separation, watercourse fencing, fencing for buffer strips, pumps, livestock troughs, farm-track cross-drains, piped culverts in ditches, resurfacing of gateways, surfacing machinery and livestock tracks, roofing of manure storage. Full details here.
Applications must be received by Natural England by June 30. You may submit only one application per holding for a grant, up to £10,000. Two or more holdings managed as a single unit are classed as one holding.
The grant money is available through a £5m catchment sensitive farming scheme introduced at the beginning of this month.
The grant aid comes with the usual paperwork and conditions associated with the spending of public money.
Some of the caveats are: only new (not replacement or maintenance) items are eligible; you must not be what is termed a "business in difficulty"; the work in question must not be already under way.
Action points
• Contact Zoe Davies at NPA for further information.
• In any event, don't take any action, until you have talked to your local catchment sensitive farming officer. Contact details are here (page 18).
Pig industry to brief Bishop
Pig producers John Godfrey, James Walgate, Richard Longthorp, Chris Brant, and Ian/Stephen/Bert Hoyland, will meet the Bishop of Lincoln, the Right Revd Dr John Saxbee, for a working breakfast on Thursday, May 7, to brief him on the crisis in the pig industry. Also present from the pig industry will be Reg Joseph and Digby Scott, together with Sir Ben Gill, who as well as being a former NFU president is also a former pig producer and a life-long champion of the sector. Representing the NFU will be regional director Richard Hezlet and county chairman Jonathan Brant. The meeting has been initiated and organised by Rev Canon Alan Robson, Lincolnshire agricultural chaplain.
Nadis sponsors
These are the sponsors of Nadis — the National Animal Disease Information Service.
9/04/08
Agskills News
Download the latest issue of Agskills News here.
Record entry for British Pig and Poultry Fair Service Award
In association with:
• Pig World
• Royal Agricultural Society of England
• NPA Producer Group
• Sponsor: Richard Longthorp
There have been over 20 nominations for the above award, which will be judged on April 30 at Uncle Henry's in Lincolnshire. Entries will close soon, so if you wish to make a nomination, please go here and do it on-line now.
The judges will be: Stewart Houston, NPA chairman; Richard Longthorp (Award sponsor); Richard Lister, NPA Producer Group chairman; Barney Kay, NPA general manager.
Footnote: I wish we could publish here the names of all the people who have been nominated (but we don't do that). There are people on the list who have served the industry well over the years and probably think — wrongly — that their efforts have never been noticed. — D.S.
Dutch producers get the message
The United Kingdom is probably leading the way in sow culling so far this year. Figures are not available yet for all European countries.
The higher rate of attrition in the United Kingdom herd may not be particularly significant when considering European pigmeat supply as a whole.
But it shows that home-produced pork is going to be in shorter supply later this year than, for instance, Danish pork. This state of affairs means honest county-of-origin labelling will become increasingly important as the year progresses.
The industry will also need to be on its guard against a return of tertiary brands (imported pigmeat dressed up to look British).
Unless there is a feed price correction in the next few months, a second wave of culling may take place on the continent — because all pig producers need a sustained period of much higher pigmeat prices if they are to survive.
The bigger cull in the United Kingdom may be attributed to the greater cost of higher-welfare production.
But NPA’s Ian Campbell has made the point on several occasions that it will also be due to the fact that many United Kingdom are able to quit with a clean(ish) pair of heels, whilst those Dutch and Danish producers who have borrowed heavily to build bespoke pig buildings are finding themselves in a less enviable position.
That said, the chart above - from data collected by BPEX— suggests that some of the Dutch producers who were minded last year to tough it out, have now decided to cut their losses and are downsizing or quitting.
At December last year, Denmark, France, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic all reported reductions in their national sow herds, with the biggest reductions being in Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic.
The Netherlands recorded an increase in its national sow herd, but the latest sow culling data shows its producers are rectifying the situation now (see chart above).
The United Kingdom census for December 2006 to December 2007 showed little change in the national sow herd — but this was due to the poor price for cull sows during foot and mouth (see BPEX chart below).
Slaughtering has remained high in the United Kingdom through this year, averaging 5,000 a week - which is 45 percent higher than usual.
Calls to Pig World indicate it is not only the immediate cost crisis that is to blame. The crisis is causing producers to review whether they wish to remain in pigs going forward, given the uncertainties of the marketplace and the increasing level of regulation.
The result is that even some producers who are comfortable that the price will indeed be 150p in a few months, and will stay there for some time, are now deciding to quit.
For more information about sow culling trends, go to
Whole chain Pig Fair
Retailers and processors will be targeted at this year's British Pig and Poultry Fair on May 13-14. For the first time, the industries' bi-annual event at Stoneleigh Park will be looking at consumer buying habits and how the supply chain can work together to add value, as well as improved production methods and new equipment for farmers. Farming minister Lord Rooker will join producers, processors and retailers at lunch on the first day of the Fair to encourage greater networking between everybody within the supply chain, discuss topical issues and answer questions.
8/04/08
European herd will continue shrinking next year
European Union pigmeat production is expected to continue to decrease through the year and by October-December will be 4.1 percent lower than last year.
And as futures markets give no sign of a significant fall in feed costs, the shrinkage will continue as a longer term phenomenon, causing shortages of supply and better prices for producers, according to a price forecasting meeting in Brussels.
The European agriculture directorate is expressing increased interest in the feeding of poultry meat protein to pigs as an alternative feed source. The European Union's soya supply has comes under pressure since growers took to the streets of Buenos Aires to protest at the Argentina president's refusal to renounce a tax hike on soy farmers.
In recent weeks the European producer price has reacted more quickly than United Kingdom prices to the growing shortage of pigs.
Average European Union price this year is expected to be up 11.3 percent on last year but this figure includes a wide range of forecasts from individual countries. Romania, for instance, expects a rise of only 2.4 percent, whilst France expects 22 percent and the Dutch are looking at 12.4 percent.
Processing capacity limits sow cull
The United States pig herd grew 11 percent last year and is now said to be losing £8.5m a day, with producers losing £15-£25 a pig as a result of over-supply and high feed costs.
According to one analyst, a reduction in the national sow herd will be hampered by limited processing capacity. About 65,000 sows have been sent to market in the last few days, but not all got bought because sow processing plants are already full.
Smithfield is cutting back its sow herd. Tyson Foods, which buys pigs from independent producers for its six mid-west pork plants, and also has its own 70,000 sow herd, said it is concerned about rising grain prices and the impact on pig farmers.
But the company has declined to discuss plans, ahead of its April 28 second-quarter earnings statement, for any changes it might make to its pork operation.
According to one commentator, this has been the nation’s largest first-quarter pork production in history. “It will take at least two or three quarters to work through present supplies, keeping pork prices lower for consumers."
Following the shake-out currently taking place in the United States pig industry, it is expected more processors will put their pig farmer suppliers on contract, so that in future they have greater control over supplies and price.
Vion vies for Grampian
Dutch processor Vion has emerged as the preferred bidder for Grampian Country Food Group. Analysts expect it to value Fred Duncan’s company at around £350m. An announcement is expected soon.
Cranswick delights investors
Having disappointed the market with its quarter-three trading update, Cranswick has delighted investors this week by reporting strong quarter-four performance with continuing strong sales. Cranswick chairman Martin Davey says there is always a time lag in passing higher costs on and the company has now managed to do that in its primary processed pork business. Cranswick is at the upper end of the pork market and the company feels this will insulate it from the worst effects of any credit crisis-related downturn. Total sales for the year to the end of March are 21 percent up on the previous year. Total fourth-quarter sales are up 19 percent.
Carcase scoring film to be played at Pig Fair
British Pig and Poultry Fair 2008 has teamed up with BPEX to deliver an interactive workshop on the British Pig Health Scheme. The workshop will run on both days.
Based on the Wholesome Pigs Scheme that has operated in Scotland for the past two years, the British Pig Health Scheme uses specialist pig vets to assess a range of health conditions in pig carcases slaughtered in abattoirs throughout Britain. Members and their vets then receive consignment and quarterly reports on the health status of their pigs with:
• Early warning on emerging disease problems.
• Objective measurement of herd health improvements.
• Feedback on the effectiveness of vaccination.
The interactive pig health workshop, led by pig veterinarian Nigel Woolfendon, of Bishopton Vet Group, will give producers the chance to understand how the British Pig Health Scheme operates and how they can benefit from membership of the scheme.
“Pigs can show signs of sub-clinical disease in the carcase even though they didn’t show any obvious signs of disease whilst in the herd, so the British Pig Health Scheme is one of the useful tools available to help maintain pig health,” said Nigel Woolfendon.
“If sub-clinical diseases are found early in carcases at the abattoir, animals can be treated accordingly to aid prevention of the disease manifesting itself in the herd on farm. The scheme provides an early warning system so that potential problems can be solved more quickly and promptly.
“There are eight key conditions affecting pigs, many of which are respiratory, including enzootic pneumonia, milk spot liver, pleurisy and peritonitis, and they have a major impact on pig growth and carcase value.
“For the Fair workshop, we will play a film of the vet at the abattoir to show how the pig is assessed, what the conditions look like and how they affect the pig - something producers will not have seen before.”
The workshop will be a practical session, supported by pictures showing conditions in the pig ranging from healthy to very unhealthy, and a model of a pig with pull-away sections will be used to explain which part of the pig is which.
There will also be examples of how farmers have used the results to adjust their farming methods and producers will be able to discuss their results during the session. The information delivered by the scheme can help reduce production costs by up to 5p a kilo.
All producers are invited to go along to the workshop at the Fair - both those who are already involved in the scheme as well as those yet to sign up - to talk to vets about how they can get the best out of the scheme and for guidance on how to interpret British Pig Health Scheme results. The workshop will run at 3pm on both days in the workshop theatre between halls 1 and 2.
The Fair will provide an ideal chance to gain more information about the British Pig Health Scheme and other pig health issues, including the growing need for whole-chain collaboration on health management.
The Fair aims to open up discussion on co-ordinated disease control throughout the food supply chain: from the farm and the abattoir, through processing to the retailers’ shelves.
Plus, PIPR points are available for participants – one for attending the Fair and a second for attending the workshop. Please see the website for details: www.pigandpoultry.org.uk. And, for any further advice on the British Pig Health Scheme scheme, producers can visit the BPEX stand at the Fair or contact their vet.
Minister supports pork campaign
Scotland rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead has added his voice to Quality Meat Scotland’s 'Get some pork on that fork' campaign. “I would urge shoppers to look for the Specially Selected Pork logo and consider using fresh Scottish pork cuts in every-day meals, alongside the more traditional Sunday roasting joints,” he said. Quality Meat Scotland reports sales up 20 percent year on year.
CAP health check
The government’s response to the CAP “Health Check” proposals is a mixture of the good, the bland and the worrying, the NFU said today.
“There is much the NFU can agree to, including full decoupling, simplification, avoiding payment limits, raising the minimum claim size and the abolition of set aside”, said NFU policy director Martin Haworth.
“However the United Kingdom position on Article 69 (a cut in the Single Farm Payment to fund specific programmes) is more concerning. Some of the conditions the United Kingdom wants are welcome - for example that measures should not be trade-distorting, should not lead to an uneven playing field across the European Union and should be time-limited.
"But it is hard to see how these conditions are compatible with the government’s declared interest in examining ways in which the Article could be used, and their wish that this should be on a regional basis.
“Equally worrying is the position on modulation. The NFU supports the Commission position there should be an increase in European modulation, but this should be offset by an equivalent cut in national modulation, where this exists. The government, on the other hand, wants to see an increase in the funds available for the United Kingdom and wants the ability to use all of any increase on environmental issues.
"The NFU could only support the first proposition if it resulted in no increase in modulation to individual farmers, in other words that the increased money comes from European Union funds, and would only support the second proposition if the “environment” was interpreted more widely than countryside stewardship, on climate change measures for example.
“Regarding set-aside, the NFU supports its abolition but does not support the implication in the paper that there is “clear evidence” that there are environmental benefits that are at risk, or that there need to be additional measures to address this issue.”
Debbie and Andrew woo MPs over fair trade for pig farmers
Yorkshire sausage makers Debbie and Andrew Keeble have been invited to Westminster to discuss their 'fair trade for British pig farmers' policy.
The husband and wife team of the Debbie and Andrew’s brand will meet MPs from all political parties to explain their attempt to help the British pig industry through its current difficulties.
As ex-pig farmers themselves of 20 years, Debbie and Andrew Keeble launched their fair price scheme in January as a response to the industry crisis.
The couple are lobbying MPs to encourage the bigger supermarkets and other producers to back their efforts and introduce similar initiatives.
Thirsk-based Debbie and Andrew’s pays 15 percent more for its pork and passes the difference directly to its farmers and processors. Some meetings with MPs have already taken place and others are scheduled.
7/04/08
Distorted and short-term
Andrew Spencer, chief executive of Australian Pork Limited, says the Oz pig industry is imploding due to cheap imports of frozen pigmeat and high grain prices. He describes the Australian Productivity Commission's conclusion that no import safeguards are necessary as distorted, short-termist, and costly to farmers, rural communities and ultimately consumers. "To continue to ignore the fact that all of Australia’s pork imports come from countries that actively subsidise their pig farmers and their pork industry with tax-payers' funds, laughs in the face of fair trading conditions and a free trade environment,” he said.
LIPS Recipe of the Month for April is here
Premier Nutrition
Vitamin and mineral premix manufacturer Premier Nutrition has been bought by AB Agri Ltd, the agriculture business of Associated British Foods plc. Premier Nutrition will continue to operate as a stand-alone business, under the leadership of Robert Rae. ABF says that strategically this acquisition enables it to be a significant player in overseas markets, including premix supply to the pet food and aqua food sectors which, with the financial backing of ABF, will be areas for growth for Premier Nutrition. All 83 staff, including all the directors and shareholders will remain with the business.
Assured British Pigs Newsletter
To save cost, the Assured British Pigs spring 2008 newsletter is not being mailed to members, but it is available to download here.
New Product Award
Pig Fair New Product Award entry forms are here.
Pig Discussion Groups
It is useful for the industry to have a topical list of pig discussion group contacts. Please help by making sure your group is represented on the database that will appear on this site well before the next round of meetings. Complete the form HERE (or ask the appropriate person to complete it). Email addresses will be secured in the database so they cannot be robotically harvested for spam.
l NPA Trade Directory l Mechanical data l National Pig Association l Defra l BBC weather l
l Environment Agency l Food Standards Agency l Quality Meat Scotland l Scottish Executive l
Pig World , PO Box 100, Benniworth, Market Rasen LN8 6LE, United Kingdom