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< Community Wire Next Article> Swine Cluster 4 Assembles Researchers From 13 Canadian Institutions Working Collaboratively on Pork Sector Priorities Bruce Cochrane 5 Mar 2024 Swine Innovation Pork General Manager Daniel Ramage discusses the value of collaborative research. 00:00 / 02:27 Farmscape for March 5, 2024 The General Manager of Swine Innovation Porc says Swine Cluster 4 brings together over 50 researchers from 13 institutions working collaboratively on 18 pork sector research and knowledge transfer priorities. Swine Cluster 4, a five year just over 20-million-dollar research initiative funded by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the provincial pork organizations and industry partners, was officially launched in late February. Swine Innovation Porc General Manager Daniel Ramage says a large-scale program like this really does start by looking at what are the priority areas for the industry? Quote-Daniel Ramage-Swine Innovation Porc: Through the swine cluster program, we have had the benefit of focussing on a wide range of priorities, things from animal health to nutrition, animal care, meat quality. Then, of course environmental sustainability is of increasing interest to both consumers and regulators and then to producers as well. The swine cluster really is looking at strengthening all of those areas through targeted research projects. What the swine cluster does through this collaborative investment is that it really does facilitate collaboration among researchers from leading institutions and universities across Canada and it focusses that research around targeted industry priorities, things that are going to drive forward meaningful advancements for the pork sector. It's bringing together over 50 researchers from across Canada and that's researchers from across 13 institutions working across 18 research and knowledge transfer activities. We're really excited about that, both the scope of the research that's being put forward but also the level of collaboration and the level of cooperation that we're able to advance through this type of investment. Full details on Swine Innovation Porc and its Swine Cluster 4 activities can be found at swineinnovationporc.ca . For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

2022-2 3 SIP Annual Report Learn how SIP collaborations and partnerships benefit producers and the industry in our online annual report. Read More Available Online SIP supports the Canadian pork industry by facilitating innovative research and knowledge transfer for the benefit of the value chain. Learn More Innovation Feeds Industry Progress Sustainably raised pork builds a better future, from farm to fork. Sustainability Learn More Button Cutting-edge practices fortify the pork industry's position and success. Resiliency Learn More Button Innovation drives productivity, and economic viability across the value chain. Growth Learn More Button Turning Priorities into Action Discover how our pork research projects are advancing key priorities Animal Health Environment Animal Nutrition Animal Care Quality Knowledge in Your Hands. Get the Latest Insights and Research News 05/03/24 Sustainability, Other, Animal Health, Nutrition Swine Cluster 4 Assembles Researchers From 13 Canadian Institutions Working Collaboratively on Pork Sector Priorities Button 21/02/24 Sustainability, Economics, Animal Health, Nutrition Swine Cluster 4 Research Initiative Officially Launched Button 16/02/24 Nutrition, Animal Health Addition of Fibre Provides Balance in Diets of Developing Gilts Button 05/01/24 Animal Health Recombinant African Swine Fever Virus Provides Tool to Evaluate Antiviral Compounds Button 19/10/23 When the Going Gets Tough, Science Helps Pigs Get Growing A Strategy for Sick Swine Nutrition, Sustainability Button 29/08/23 A Golden Chance to Green the Planet Science Lends a Hand to Lower Footprint Sustainability Button 14/07/23 It’s High Time to Lower Feed Costs Stretching Diet Dollars Only Makes Sense Nutrition Button Research Highlights Community Wire View All View All “Science is at the heart of modern pork production. As a producer, I'm always on the lookout for the best tools and practices to reduce risks and grow my business.”

< Community Wire Next Article> Development of Antiviral Tools to Control African Swine Fever Needed Before Outbreak Occurs Bruce Cochrane 21 Dec 2023 Dr. Suresh Tikoo discusses work being conducted by VIDO to develop new antiviral drugs to combat African Swine Fever 00:00 / 02:42 Farmscape for December 21, 2023 A scientist with the University of Saskatchewan suggests the tools to address an outbreak of African Swine Fever need to be in place before the infection makes its way to North America. The Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) at the University of Saskatchewan, with funding from Swine innovation Porc, is evaluating commercially available panels of antiviral compounds, for use in developing antiviral drugs to deal with African Swine Fever. Dr. Suresh Tikoo, a Professor and the Director of the Vaccinology and Immunotherapeutics Graduate Program, in the School of Public Health and a senior scientist with VIDO, says with African Swine Fever outbreaks already reported in countries in eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, Germany, Belgium and Latin America (Haiti and Dominican republic) it's not a question of if but rather when the infection will enter North America. Quote-Dr. Suresh Tikoo-University of Saskatchewan School of Public Health and VIDO: Pork shipments generate about 30 million dollars in Canada and, once this disease comes into Canada, international market access is lost. In Canada alone, ASF may cause direct economic loss estimated at 24 billion dollars U.S. The virus is not here in North America but, because of the economic considerations, there's a big concern about the virus coming in and if it comes how to control the spread. With that in mind our long-term objective is to develop tactics which can control ASF infection as an alternative approach to vaccination because no vaccine is available. Although attempts are being made to make vaccine, no fruitful success has been achieved yet. We want to develop those antivirals so that at least we can reduce the susceptibility of the pigs and limit the transmission of the virus. Dr. Tikoo says researchers are doing high throughput screening of these antiviral compounds in vitro, in tissue culture cells in the CFIA approved level 3 lab at VIDO's International Vaccine Center, VIDO in hopes of identifying a few anti ASFV compounds that merit testing in vivo, in live animals. He expects to have results of the in vitro testing within four or five months. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Survey Shows Increased Pork Productivity and Efficiency and Decreased Environmental Footprint Bruce Cochrane 14 Jul 2023 Dr. Mario Tenuta discusses results of the "Canadian Pig Production Practices Survey for Improved Economic and Environmental Viability" 00:00 / 02:40 Farmscape for July 14, 2023 An analysis of Canadian pork production over the past 30 years shows a continued increase in efficiency and productivity and a shrinking of the sector's environmental footprint. As part of the "Canadian Pig Production Practices Survey for Improved Economic and Environmental Viability", conducted on behalf of Swine Innovation Porc, pork producers across Canada were asked about all aspects of pork production, including the design, floor space, stage of growth and throughputs of their barns, the composition and source of diets, including inputs for producing and transporting the ingredients, everything associated with manure management as well as energy and water use. Dr. Mario Tenuta, the Senior Industrial Research Chair in 4R Nutrient Stewardship and a Professor of Soil Ecology with the University of Manitoba, says the study shows from 1990 to 2020 the efficiency of producing pork improved by a good eight to 10 percent. Quote-Dr. Mario Tenuta-University of Manitoba: You name it, it's improved, in terms of water, electricity or fuel, feed all improved and there is a number of reasons for this. One of them is genetics. Another is that there's advances that we've had technology wise and then also the utilization of available coproducts from the general food industry and then also distiller’s industries or ethanol or alcohol consumption, so we see a lot more dried distiller’s grains for example. Then utilization of meal, so the coproducts from oil production and particularly canola. It's really positive for the industry to see this trajectory that we've had and I think we can identify areas of improved trajectory for the near future. Dr. Tenuta suggests, if we change the diet even more, continue to improve barn design, go to renewable energy sources and further modernise production we can anticipate additional improvements. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Swine Cluster 4 Research Initiative Officially Launched Bruce Cochrane 21 Feb 2024 SIP Chair Arno Schober discusses the launch of the 20 million dollar Swine Cluster 4 research initiative. 00:00 / 02:31 Farmscape for February 21, 2024 The Government of Canada, Swine Innovation Porc and their research partners have officially launched the Swine Cluster 4 research program. The Swine Cluster research program is an initiative which unites industry, government and academic partners around shared research priorities focused on fostering continued sustainability, resiliency and growth in the Canadian pork sector. Pork sector stakeholders gathered yesterday in Sherbrooke, Quebec for the official launch of Swine Cluster 4. SIP Chair Arno Schober explains the Swine Cluster 4 program was developed using a highly collaborative approach intended to facilitate a research agenda that targets key pork industry priorities while avoiding duplication of efforts. Quote-Arno Schober-Swine Innovation Porc: The cluster is a five-year program and the total amount money allocated is just over 20 million dollars and it is really important for us to recognise that the Government of Canada is providing 10.6 million dollars to our cluster. The priorities are climate change and environment, economic growth and development and sector resilience and societal challenges. This approach is a collaboration across the country. In total we have about 13 research institutions that are part of Cluster 4, we have about 36 industry partners in this cluster and we have about 50 researchers with their projects and sub projects that are part of this. When you look at that, I would say that pretty much every swine research facility across Canada is part of this cluster and each project also has several sub projects so we're basically getting a collaboration from all swine researchers in Canada more or less. Schober notes there's a lot of feed produced in Canada and lots of space to raise livestock. He says, with 70 percent of its pork production exported, we need to have the research in place that will ensure Canada can stay competitive in the world export market. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Synthesized Sugar Based Vaccines Allow Pigs' Immune Systems to Recognize Strep Suis Bruce Cochrane 27 Sept 2023 Dr. Todd Lowary discusses new compounds that assist the pigs' immune to recognise Strep suis 00:00 / 02:47 Farmscape for September 27, 2023 Scientists with the Universities of Montreal and Alberta are developing new compounds that will allow the immune system of the pig to recognise and respond to Strep suis. Researchers with the University of Montreal and the University of Alberta, with funding provided by Swine Innovation Pork, have developed a Streptococcus suis vaccine based on the protective sugar coating that envelopes the bacteria and to improve production capability are synthesising that sugar. Dr. Todd Lowary, an organic chemist and professor emeritus with the University of Alberta's Department of Chemistry, explains his team creates complex sugar molecules by using smaller pieces to make longer chain carbohydrates, much like putting beads on a string, and these molecules are then used in the formulation of vaccines. Quote-Dr. Todd Lowary-University of Alberta: All bacteria are coated with a layer of sugar and these sugars do a number of things. It keeps the surface of the bacteria intact. It also interacts with the immune system of the host and these are good antigens, so they're good for vaccine development. If you go about this there are a couple of ways that you can think about developing a vaccine based on this sugar. One is to take the sugar that you isolate from nature and use that. The problem with that approach is that doing that isolation can be quite challenging and it's very difficult to get large quantities of material. The other approach, that we have done, is to build this up from the bottom up essentially, using chemistry. There are advantages in the sense that we can make more amounts of material, we can generally make things in higher purity but the disadvantage is that it's slower so, at the moment, we're trying to figure out the best way to make these so that it can be sped up and be more economical. Certainly, the structures of these sugars have been known for a long time so it provides us a roadmap to know what we make. It's important to have that information before we go in to try to make something. Dr. Lowary says his lab has created several of these sugars, all of which have been tested and some of which have worked out. He says the next steps are to streamline the approach and look at different vaccine formulations focussing on improving performance and bringing down the cost of manufacturing. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Addition of Fibre Provides Balance in Diets of Developing Gilts Bruce Cochrane 16 Feb 2024 Dr. Lee-Anne Huber discusses the value of adding fibre to the diets of gestating gilts. 00:00 / 02:50 Farmscape for February 16, 2024 A multi-institutional team of scientists has shown the inclusion of fibre in the diets of developing gilts helps provide the nutritional balance that will avoid over conditioning without hindering the development of mammary tissues. Research aimed at improving the mammary development of gilts, conducted as part of Swine Cluster 3, is highlighted in Swine Innovation Porc's 2022-2023 annual report. Dr. Lee-Anne Huber, an associate professor specializing in swine nutrition, in the Department of Animal Biosciences at the University of Guelph, says we know that piglet growth is directly related to milk production and milk production is driven by mammary development so the goal was to find nutritional strategies to maximise mammary development. Quote-Dr. Lee-Anne Huber-University of Guelph: The first phase of mammary development occurs between 90 days of age and puberty. How we feed the gilts will influence their mammary development and their lifetime potential for milk production. On one hand we want to have those gilts growing quickly and supplying enough nutrients for that growth but if they grow too fast during the development period, that will lead to feet and leg problems later on in the reproductive herd and possibly early culling. On the other hand, if we restrict feed to slow down growth of the animals, we've shown that mammary development is also reduced and also subsequent milk production. We're trying to balance between having the gilts grow but not too fast but not restrict them too much. Since gilts are typically housed in groups in the gilt development unit and they have ad libitum access to feed in the first place, it's extremely difficult to try and restrict their growth by restricting the amount of feed that is supplied. Fibre is an attractive approach because it increases gut fill, it makes you feel full. That's why we eat high fibre diets when we're trying to lose weight, and reduces caloric intake while animals are still offered feed ad libitum. Dr. Huber says providing a high fibre diet was effective in controlling body size and body fatness at the time of breeding and mammary development was not negatively affected. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Consumers More Curious than Ever About How and Where Food is Produced Bruce Cochrane 14 Apr 2023 An interview with Amy te Plate-Church, Centre for Food Integrity 00:00 / 02:35 The Director of the Center for Food Integrity says more than ever consumers are curious about how and where their food is produced. “Trends and developments in consumer perceptions of modern pork production and implications for farmers” was the topic of the keynote address yesterday at Manitoba Pork's 2023 Annual General Meeting. Amy te Plate-Church, the Director of the U.S. based Center for Food Integrity, says consumers are more curious today than they've ever been about where food is produced and the factors they consider when making purchasing decisions are changing. Clip-Amy te Plate-Church-Center for Food Integrity: Historically the big three factors have been price, quality and health and nutrition and that remains true today but today there are more other factors that are weighing into the choices that consumers make. That includes convenience but it also includes the social considerations around food production. Can I trust that the animals that produced this food were well cared for, are the farmers utilizing environmentally friendly practices, is this good social and economic contribution? People today have so many sources of information so we, as the food industry and farmers, need to be aware of where consumers are and more and more of that is online so social media, online influencers, web sites, having our message in all of those places so consumers can find answers to the questions that they have when they have those answers. Also, consumers are highly dependent on what they see on the packaging or in the store as they're making that decision. As far as trusted sources of information, farmers are highly trusted. They're respected by the public for the hard work that they do so it's important to be sharing what they're doing and why they're doing what they do on the farm. Te Plate-Church says north or south of the border farmers are salt of the earth folks who are working hard to produce food in a responsible way and make sure we have food for consumers around the world. < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Scientists Seek Alternatives to Antibiotics for Growth Promotion Bruce Cochrane 11 Aug 2023 Dr. Dominic Poulin-Laprade discusses research aimed at improving piglet health and performance through dietary supplementation 00:00 / 02:43 Farmscape for August 11, 2023 A scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada says new rules governing antibiotic use in feed have heightened the need to find alternatives. As part of research, funded by Swine Innovation Porc, scientists compared the performance of piglets fed a control diet consisting of 35 percent naked oats to diets supplemented with various combinations of bovine colostrum, medium-chain fatty acids and yeast extract and to diets supplemented with the antibiotic chlortetracycline. Dr. Dominic Poulin-Laprade, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, says the abrupt dietary and environmental changes at weaning have many detrimental consequences on the piglets' health. Quote-Dr. Dominic Poulin-Laprade-Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: At the time of weaning piglets will transition from lactation to a solid grain-based diet. In addition to this feeding transition, piglets are separated from the sows and are introduced into a new pen where they must establish the hierarchal order again. Weaning is intensely stressful for the piglets that still have an immature intestinal immune system and microbiota resulting in numerous physiological, immunological and microbiological changes causing reduced animal performance, increased susceptibility to enteric infections and, in some cases, mortality. To reduce the effect of weaning, cases of infection and important economic losses producers and veterinarians use in-feed antibiotics. Canada and many other countries have banned the use of medically important antibiotics for growth promotion making the research for alternative growth promoters a crucial need. Many research teams are studying the potential of feeding supplements as alternatives to the use of in-feed antibiotics. However little research has focussed on formulating specific feeds for the preweaning period to facilitate the transition during the weaning period by increasing the pre and postweaning feed intake. Dr. Poulin-Laprade acknowledges the supplements tested in this study fell short of mimicking the animal performance obtained using prophylactic antibiotics. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Surprising Discoveries Could Lead to New Antiviral Drugs to Combat PRRS Bruce Cochrane 26 Jul 2023 Dr. Carl Gagnon discusses interactions between PRRS and other disease-causing pathogens 00:00 / 02:44 Farmscape for July 26, 2023 A surprising discovery related to the interactions between Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus and other infectious agents may lead to new antiviral drugs to fight PRRS. PRRS virus causes respiratory problems in pigs of all ages, reproductive problems in sows and costs the Canadian swine sector about 150 million dollars per year. With funding from Swine Innovation Porc Researchers with the University of Montreal have been evaluating the interactions between PRRS and other disease-causing pathogens. Dr. Carl Gagnon, a professor with the University of Montreal and a member of the swine and poultry infectious disease research center, says the initial objective was to understand how PRRS and other pathogens interact. Quote-Dr. Carl Gagnon-University of Montreal: In one of the studies that we've done we were looking at a bacteria that we call Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae . It's a highly pathogenic bacteria that rarely causes health issues in pigs but, when it's there and it's a highly pathogenic strain, then it could be very very deadly to pigs. If we had PRRS virus and this specific bacteria, what is the mechanism involved and can PRRS virus facilitate Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae colonization of the animal or facilitate infection by the bacteria? Completely surprisingly, when the bacteria was present during PRRS virus co-infection, we have an inhibition of PRRS virus replication so the presence of the bacteria was blocking the infection of PRRS viruses. So, we started to investigate this phenomenon to try to understand what was happening and we realised that the bacteria was secreting at least one or several molecules that could actually have an antiviral effect against the virus. The financial support from SIP is to try to characterise the molecules, identify those bacterial molecules to hopefully develop an antiviral against PRRS viruses. Dr. Gagnon says, by characterising the mechanism of action of those molecules, it's hoped we can find others that can be used to develop cost effective interventions for PRRS. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

< Community Wire Next Article> Recombinant African Swine Fever Virus Provides Tool to Evaluate Antiviral Compounds Bruce Cochrane 5 Jan 2024 Dr. Suresh Tikoo describes the value of a recombinant African Swine Fever virus designed to fluoresce when it replicates. 00:00 / 02:46 Farmscape for January 5, 2023 A recombinant African Swine Fever virus designed to fluoresce when it replicates is helping researchers evaluate the effectiveness of antiviral compounds for use in developing new drugs to help control the infection. With funding provided by Swine Innovation Porc, researchers with the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization have created a recombinant African Swine Fever virus that allows them to see the effects of antiviral compounds on viral replication. Dr. Suresh Tikoo, a Professor and the Director of the Vaccinology and Immunotherapeutics Graduate Program, in the School of Public Health and a senior scientist with VIDO, explains researchers are now evaluating panels of commercially available antiviral compounds. Quote-Dr. Suresh Tikoo-Dr. Suresh Tikoo: Mostly they are synthetic compounds which have been tested against a number of different viruses and other microorganisms. There are panels available from 5 thousand to 20 thousand compounds from the commercial companies. Usually, the drugs can act at different stages of virus replication. For example, virus attachment, DNA replication, protein synthesis or encapsulation of the virus. African Swine Fever virus does not form what we call plaques, which means that we can not see under the microscope whether the virus is replicating or not. So, we had to produce a recombinant African Swine Fever virus which expresses green fluorescent protein (GFP), a reporter gene. We have isolated that virus. So, what that gives us is that, when we treat the cells and then infect those cells with the GFP expressing virus we can measure the virus replication by visualizing the difference in number of cells expressing green signal (treated vs non treated cells) under the microscope. Dr. Tikoo says researchers are using high throughput screening in vitro (in tissue culture) in the CFIA approved level 3 lab at VIDO's International Vaccine Center in hopes of identifying a few antiviral compounds that merit further testing in vivo (in live animals). He expects to have results of the in vitro testing within four to five months. For more visit Farmscape.Ca . Bruce Cochrane. *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers < Community Wire Next Article >

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