Abstract
Pig farmers are exposed to strong international competition and confronted with low revenues, while production requirements are increasing. Individual electronic monitoring allows for closer observation of the fattening process, which can be useful for identifying weaknesses in the production process and carrying out more targeted cost management. Consequently, this study aimed to demonstrate a reduction in unit production costs through individual animal identification (IAI) using ultra-high-frequency radio frequency identification (UHF RFID) transponder ear tags. For data collection, day-old suckling piglets were individually marked. During fattening, these piglets (n = 224) were kept in 16 groups (n = 14 in each). Individual body weights and the feed consumption for each pen were recorded until slaughtering. These data were used to perform three hypothetical selection scenarios at nine different times, retrospectively, by selecting individual animals that deviated downwards from the mean value of live weight by 10, 15, or 20%. For each group, two different calculations were performed to highlight potential savings. High potential savings of direct costs (up to EUR 4.56) for female animals and castrates (EUR 5.44) were shown. Nevertheless, costs of individual data collection were EUR 4.06 per pig, and we found that IAI offers advantages for conventional fatteners for future fattening periods to work in an economically sustainable manner.
Highlights
Conventional pig farmers, who produce nearly homogeneous pigs in terms of body weight and composition, are exposed to strong international competition and affected by an increasingly poor market situation
In light of the trend of keeping “masses of animals” without precise knowledge about individual animals, an individual animal identification (IAI) system represents an option in the context of precision livestock farming [5]
The present study aimed to evaluate the use of IAI in fattening pigs under field conditions
Summary
Conventional pig farmers, who produce nearly homogeneous pigs in terms of body weight and composition, are exposed to strong international competition and affected by an increasingly poor market situation. Producers are encouraged to reduce unit production costs as much as possible by increasing production volumes (economies of scale) This is the main reason for the structural change in pork production in recent years, which has moved away from many smaller farms towards fewer—but larger and more specialised—farms [2,3]. This development leads to a greater distance between the fattener and the individual animal in terms of less time per animal [4]. In light of the trend of keeping “masses of animals” without precise knowledge about individual animals, an individual animal identification (IAI) system represents an option in the context of precision livestock farming [5]
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