Fine-Tune Vitamin Levels To Boost Profits PRINCETON. N.J. Whether you’re talking about a sow’s reproductive performance or her pigs’ lean growth potential, the pork industry’s quest for greater efficiency is farcing some major reconsiderations of vitamin re quirements. As producers push to get more, faster, for less, researchers are asking whether current vitamin feeding levels allow producers to recoup all their investment in bet ter genetics and more efficient production practices. Meanwhile, the National Re search Council (NRC) continues work on updating its published vitamin requirement levels, which offer benchmark minimums for the industry. The issue is neither small or simple. Vitamins may account for only 0.1 percent of a typical ra tion’s weight, but they’re involved m 100 percent of the metabolic processes that enable the animal to turn feed into muscle, fat, skin, and bone. Short-change an animal NEED YOUR FARM BUILDINGS PAINTED? Let us give you a price! Write: Daniel’s Painting 637-A Georgetown Rd. Ronks, PA 175t2 (or leave message) ■■ (717) 687-8262 ■■■ Spray on and Brush a in Painting B m •* ISI • Agricultural • Commercial • Residential • 'Retaining Walls • Bunker Silos • Manure Storage, Etc. t X * ■* i *. >vV # v x * ' ?v> v •*» f wi . ■' Hart For r Custpmer . Satisfaction! on some of the B vitamins, for in stance, and it won’t matter how well you balance the rest of the ra tion; you’ll have less than opti mum growth. “Basically, you can think of vitamins as the spark plugs of metabolism,” said Dr. Merlin Lindemann, at the Universitiy of Kentucky. “You get your energy from a variety of grains and other feedstuffs, protein supplies and so forth, but you need the vitamins to run the engine.” Further complicating the issue, scientists are still refining their understanding of vitamins such as the exact role of the antioxidant vitamins in the immune response. At the same time, advances at the farm level can affect the animals’ vitamin needs. So determining the dietary vitamin levels that permit optimum health and productivity can present the challenge of shoot ing at a moving target In fact, the NRC last revised its swine requirements in 1988, so even the most recent research un- Heifer Facility Featuring 12'.Wide x 8' Deep Manure Storage System with Waffle Slats I vv + •*» - INC. “ 430 Concrete Ave., Leoia, PA derlying its present requirements is about 10 years old. “There are indications that in some cases, be cause of changes since then, the current NRC estimates for some vitamins are substantially below what may now be needed in cer tain management systems,” said lowa State University’s Dr. Tim Stahly. One example of the reevalua tion now taking place: a study by Stahly and other lowa State re searchers of five B vitamins that are closely linked to muscle devel opment. The researchers found that both rate of gain and feed effi ciency didn’t peak until vitamin levels reached three to five time the NRC requirements. And the greater needs occurred in pigs from a modem genotype with high lean growth potential. Similarly, recent studies by Ohio State University researchers found that average litter size in creased by one pig and incidence of mastitis-metritis-agalactia (MMA) fell significantly when I •A No hernia is unrepairable, even after several previous failed attempts. We specialize in outpatient hernia repairs, and most patients are able to return to full work with-in several days : PLEASE CALL COLLECT OR WRITE FOR MORE INFORMATION MID RTLRNTIC SURGICAL SERUICES 217 Harrisburg Ave., Suite 201 Lancaster, PA 17603 (800) HERNIA 8 MOST INSURANCE ACCEPTED I ■SD9B) * •*v~ sow rations included three to four times the NRC recommended lev el for vitamin E. Such discrepancies between op timum levels and NRC require ments can also be traced to the NRC’s goals when it sets require ments, noted Lindemann. “The NRC establishes nutrient require ment' levels to avoid deficiency signs the requirements are meant to be a floor,” he said. “They don’t necessarily address all the situations that exist out there on hog operations like genotypes and environment and feedstuffs. It would be too daunt ing a task to define nutrient levels for all those situations.” AS for the payback from accur ately gauging animals’ needs, Lindemann likens vitamin nutri tion to fertilizing com. “Let’s say you put $lO of nitrogen on your com and gel a $3O yield response. Perhaps the next $lO of fertilizer would only give $2O of increased yield. It’s not as great a response as the First unit of addition, but it’s certainly still avcry good re sponse. “You don’t have to fertilize your fields in the first place. But if you don’t, you’re never going to be one of the top producers. In fact, you’re not going to be in business long. Similarly with vita mins. The animal can probably survive without supplementation, but you won’t maximize econom ic performance. And while the first unit of addition will give the greatest response, there are still got mi HEAVY DUTY HOOF TRIMMING TABLES Endorsed by the International Hoof Trimming School of Wisconsin • 2 10-mch lift belts • 3500 lb. axle with or without brakes • See video on the Tilt Table available upon request jft> •Sj&i ***** mm ii0 1 ■* THREE MODELS TO CHOOSE 1. PORTABLE 2. STATIONARY 3. 3 POINT HITCH Berkelmans Welding RR 7, AYLMER, ONTARIO, CANADA NSH 2R6 (519) 765-4230 UncMtef Farming, Saturday, May 4, 1996-03 very economical returns to addi tional supplementation. “So the question becomes, At what level do I supplement? Do I want to minimize my costs and maybe take a chance with per formance? Or do I want to look at all the informaiton and perhaps supplement at a more optimal lev el that is going to maximize prof its?” Any number of operation-spe cific factors can determine what that optimum level is, Lindemann noted. “Your feeding program, for one,” he said. “Lower total feed intake might necessitate higher rates of supplementation to keep vitamin intake constant Or if you have added fat in your diet it might require a bit extra of certain vitamins. Stress can affect vitamin needs the studies that the NRC relies on often have a relatively low stocking density, and hence a minimum amount of stress. Food stuffs can vary greatly in vitamin content and how much is available to the animal.” Indeed, for all the rethinking oi vitamin supplementation levels that will help optimize animal per formance and producer profits, one thing has remained constant: the importance of adapting gener al advice on supplementation tc the particulars of the farm. “Once you look at the NRC floor,’ Lindcmann said, “you need tc look at your own operation’s pro file, factor in a margin of error and then make your decision will input from your nutritionist and feed supplier.” • 4” casters for cradle fold-up • Two hydraulic cylinders for extra stability • tool box for D C pump and battery protection • manure grate to keep work area clean • fold away side gate • removable tread board • 45 min. video from International Hoof Trimming School of Canada k? 12-year building experience in the tables design 2"x2" tube frame chute chute measures 75"x28”x75” high Delivery Available
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