• Feeding trials with pigs

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Feeding trials with pigs

Introduction

This document is targeted at companies wishing to have their products tested, and provides answers to frequently asked questions in connection with how trials are conducted and concerning demands for documentation from the Danish Plant Directorate before their approval of a trial.

The Department for Nutrition and Reproduction is responsible for the feed-related activities under Danish Pig Production. We have two experimental stations as well as contact to a number of production herds (trial hosts), where it is possible to conduct feeding trials.

The companies are responsible for providing the Danish Plant Directorate with documentation. The trial cannot start before approval has been obtained from the Danish Plant Directorate.

The supply of feed additives continues to increase, and pig producers, advisers, and feedstuff producers require impartial documentation to ensure that they get their money's worth when using the products. However, in many instances, documentation is very sparse. Therefore, Danish Pig Production offers companies the possibility of testing their products in a reliable, quick and cost-effective manner. It is also possible for feedstuff companies to have a feed mix tested.

Production of trial feed

All trial diets are produced by a commercial feedstuff company.

Procedures

The production of trial feed is (normally) supervised by an experienced representative from Danish Pig Production to ensure that the correct dosage of the products is added and the various mixtures are labelled correctly. His primary task is to ensure that the producer complies with the procedures related to production and delivery as already agreed. Furthermore, the representative must coordinate the entire process until the feed is in the silo at the experimental station.

Analyses

Only analytical methods approved by the EU or nationally in Denmark can be used to check the content of various nutrients as well as the correct dosage of a product added. Where no approved method is available to analyse a given product, the following solutions are offered in order to document correct dosage of a product:

1. A representative from the company supplying the product for the trial is present when feed is produced and monitors the manual weighing and inclusion of the product.
2. A premix, containing the product as well as a tracer substance ("Micro-Tracer"), is made. The tracer can be used for both qualitative and quantitative analysis of the product. Quantitative analysis requires increased dosage of the tracer - the analytical variation is ± 20%. All costs related to the use of a tracer will be covered by the company.

Statistical analysis

All feeding trials conducted by the National Committee are designed to have a statistical power of at least 80. Statistically significant differences are indicated at a five percent level (p<0.05). Data are subjected to an analysis of variance, and levels of significance (p-values) are corrected for multiple comparisons by a Bonferroni t-test. The trials are designed to find a difference of 10% in the production value.

In all trials, the results achieved on the different parameters (feed intake, feed conversion, daily gain, and lean meat percentage) are summarized into one value: production value (piglets) or gross margin (finishers). There are two reasons for this procedure:

1. To reduce the number of tests in the statistical analysis, thus reducing the factor used in the Bonferroni adjustment of the obtained p-values.
2. The total economic effect of a product (production value) is of greater interest to the pig producer than the individual production parameters.

The statistical procedures and principles for the processing of data are established before the trial starts and are described, if required, in detail in the work plan.

Equal performance tests

When added to a diet identical to a control ration, many products are expected to improve the performance of the pigs. For some other products, it may be more appropriate to downspecify a ration, add the product, and then compare performance against a normal specification positive control. In those cases, it is essential to include a negative control ration (downspecified without product added). Thus, all equal performance tests must include a negative control treatment. All costs for a negative control treatment will be paid by the company.

Digestibility and balance tests

In combination with a product test in which production results are the primary parameters, it is also possible to conduct digestibility and/or balance tests. The production test and the digestibility/balance test include the same feed. Production data can thus be compared with digestibility data and consequently provide further knowledge about the effect of a product.

The digestibility and balance tests can be arranged with the Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences in Foulum. The company will pay for these tests.

Publication

Results from all product tests are published in Danish in a report issued by Danish Pig Production. The report is published on our internet web site (www.dansksvineproduktion.dk).

Prior to publication, the parties participating in the trial will receive a draft copy of the final report. Danish Pig Production must be informed of any comments within one week. Danish Pig Production, however, is responsible for the interpretation of the results and the final wording of the report.

Language

When trials have been carried out with the participation of foreign companies, the report is also published in English.

Ownership of data

All basic data collected during a trial remains the property of Danish Pig Production and cannot be distributed. The reason for this is to avoid publication of more than one statistical analysis and interpretation of the same set of data. All companies participating in trials are, however, welcome to follow the statistical processing and, if necessary, have specific details elaborated.

Option for non-publication

If requested, the results from a trial can be withheld from publication, or they can be published at a later date. In that case, this will be specified in the agreement (signed by both parties) prior to the start of the trial, and the price for participating will be doubled.

Trial facilities

Normally, the trials are conducted at one of the National Committee's experimental stations. In general, all work routines and management of the pigs are identical to those of any other production herd. The experimental stations have additional staff to conduct the trials and are fitted with additional equipment (silos, feeding systems, etc.).

Whenever it is not possible for the National Committee's experimental stations to comply with special requirements related to the design of the trial, it will often be possible to recruit suitable production herds among a large number of trial hosts known to the National Committee. A typical example is the testing of a product measuring the effect on the frequency of diarrhoea or mortality. Another example is the testing of a product for several groups of animals (weaners + finishers or sows + piglets etc.) simultaneously or consecutively.

Weaners

Trial facility 1 – “Grønhøj – Early weaning units – small pens”

Trial facility 2 – “Grønhøj – Early weaning units – large pens”

Trial facility 3 – “Kronjyden”

Finishers:

Trial facility 4 - “Grønhøj – finisher unit”

Product trials at an experimental station

Product trials in production herds

Work plan

All trials are conducted in accordance with the guidelines stated in the work plan for each trial. The work plan is prepared prior to the start of the trial. All feeding trials with finishers are conducted in accordance with the same fundamental guidelines. The work plan shown applies to all trials with weaners (5-11 weeks) – the number of animals, groups and replicates may vary from one trial to another, though.

Sows

Product trials with sows

Product trials with sows are normally conducted in production herds – as opposed to trials with weaners or finishers. It is therefore not possible to provide detailed information about trial facilities or prices, as they vary from trial to trial.

Dry sows

Gestating sows

Farrowing sows

Nursing sows

Economy / agreement

Prices

In addition to the basic price for a trial, supplementary charges can be imposed on

• Special requirements (additional analysis, weighing of pigs, etc.)
• Option for non-publication: Basic price + 100 per cent
• Equal performance tests: Negative control treatment

Payment

The price for participating in a trial must be agreed upon and paid prior to the start of the trial.

Agreement

During the initial planning of a trial, an agreement is drawn up, in which all significant conditions are set out. For this purpose, Danish Pig Production applies a standard agreement adapted to the conditions of each trial.

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