Batch farrowing awards change to reflect UK pig industry progress

Prizes worth more than 2,000 are up for grabs in the Batch Farrower of the Year Awards run by Janssen Animal Health.  Entry forms are available now for the 2011 awards, which have changed to reflect the increased use of batch farrowing in UK pig production since the awards were launched in 2006.

This year there will be separate awards for indoor and outdoor herds and, as new blood is the future of every unit, there will be increased focus on gilt management and productivity.

The first prize in each category will be 750-worth of semen from breeding companies chosen by the winners, or AI equipment of equivalent value.  There will also be second prizes of piglet Snugglers, thermostatically-controlled warm boxes that help piglets at risk from hypothermia to get over the critical first few hours of life.

Phil Macdonald, pig and poultry business manager, says Batch farrowing has helped producers to improve efficiency in areas such as gilt management, reproduction and farrowing, and these are critical to improving sow productivity towards the two-tonne output target encouraged by BPEX.

The Batch Farrowing Awards continue to help to focus attention on the benefits the system can bring to pig production.

For an entry form, email Gill Seels at ahealth@its.jnj.com or telephone 01494 567555.

The 2011 awards will be based on results for the 12 months to end-October 2010.  Entries must be received by May 31, 2011 and will continue to be assessed by a panel of independent judges.  The awards will be presented at a ceremony on a date to be announced.