R[0]="1871";

T[0]="Pig poo methane to generate power";

A[0]="By ... Editor";

Dn[0]="20070207";

Dt[0]="Wednesday 7 February 2007";

Acats[0]="a29a36a94";

B1[0]="      A pig farmer near Donald, in south-west Victoria, plans to cut the running costs of his desalinator with the help of pig ";

B2[0]="effluent... ";

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B4[0]=" ";

B5[0]=" ";

S1[0]="      A pig farmer near Donald, in south-west Victoria, plans to cut the running costs of his desalinator with the help of pig ";

S2[0]=" effluent.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Robert Adams' plan is to use methane from the stored poo to generate power.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; He says the 'biogas ";

S3[0]=" recovery unit' will reduce the extra $10,000 a year he is spending on electricity for desalination.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'From the research that we've done ";

S4[0]=" and looking at it, I'd have quite a few tanks set up to do this recovery system,' he said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'It should provide ";

S5[0]=" a bit to reduce emissions to the atmosphere of course, certainly cuts down on the amount of gas floating around and reduces the smell around ";

S6[0]=" the house too.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'It would be doing more than one thing.'.. ";

R[1]="1206";

T[1]="PigPass to identify food safety risks";

A[1]="By ... Editor";

Dn[1]="20060730";

Dt[1]="Sunday 30 July 2006";

Acats[1]="a29";

B1[1]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pork producers have welcomed a new identification system to trace animals from pig pen to plate.... ";

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B4[1]=" ";

B5[1]=" ";

S1[1]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pork producers have welcomed a new identification system to trace animals from pig pen to plate.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; PigPass is a ";

S2[1]=" national vendor declaration form which must accompany pigs being processed for domestic and export markets.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; It is being rolled out now and ";

S3[1]=" should be fully in place by January 2007.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; David Miles from the Victorian Farmers Federation's pig group says any disease or food ";


S4[1]=" safety risks will be identified with the new pass.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'There's got to be traceback.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; If we haven't got traceability ";

S5[1]=" well we're not going to be able to export or do anything professionally and it will control the industry, as I understand, and the VFF ";

S6[1]=" pig group we're quite happy with this,' he said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'I think it certainly will pull everybody into line.'.. ";

R[2]="782";

T[2]="Will pork fans take the bait?";

A[2]="By ... Editor";

Dn[2]="20060601";

Dt[2]="Thursday 1 June 2006";

Acats[2]="a10a29";

B1[2]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pigs fed on fish could become an alternative source of omega-3 for people who dislike seafood.... ";

B2[2]=" ";

B3[2]=" ";

B4[2]=" ";

B5[2]=" ";

S1[2]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pigs fed on fish could become an alternative source of omega-3 for people who dislike seafood.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; University of South ";

S2[2]=" Australia researchers have started recruiting volunteers to eat the nutrient-rich pork five days a week for 12 weeks.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  Its Nutritional Physiology ";

S3[2]=" Research Centre is studying the benefits of eating pork from pigs fed fishmeal high in omega-3 fatty acids.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Fish is the only ";

S4[2]=" source of long-chain omega-3, which has more nutritional benefits than short-chain sources, such as vegetables.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  The trial will be focused on ";

S5[2]=" the effect the additional omega-3 fatty acids have on improving cardiovascular risk factors.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  Centre director Professor Peter Howe said most people ";

S6[2]=" only received one third of their daily recommended intake of omega-3 fatty acids, because of the price or accessibility of fatty fish.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S7[2]="  For women, the recommended intake is 400mg a day, while men require 600mg.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  'We know not everybody is keen on ";

S8[2]=" fish, not everyone is keen on pork, but the more alternative options we have to deliver better nutrients in our diet, the more likely we ";

S9[2]=" are to achieve the recommended nutrient intakes,' Professor Howe said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The 12-week trial is a result of 12 years of work by ";

S10[2]=" Professor Howe and will investigate how much omega-3 is absorbed into the bloodstream and whether that impacts on blood fat levels.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S11[2]=" The omega-3 enriched pork has been processed into sausages, steak, stir-fry meat, mince and diced pork.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The centre still needs several volunteers ";

S12[2]=" to take part in the trial and eat five pork meals each week.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  Interested participants should be aged between 18 and ";

S13[2]=" 60, in good health, willing to eat pork for 12 weeks and be able to provide a blood sample once a fortnight at the university... ";

R[3]="741";

T[3]="Will pork fans take the bait?";

A[3]="By ... Editor";

Dn[3]="20060523";


Dt[3]="Tuesday 23 May 2006";

Acats[3]="a29";

B1[3]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pigs fed on fish could become an alternative source of omega-3 for people who dislike seafood.... ";

B2[3]=" ";

B3[3]=" ";

B4[3]=" ";

B5[3]=" ";

S1[3]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Pigs fed on fish could become an alternative source of omega-3 for people who dislike seafood.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; University of South ";

S2[3]=" Australia researchers have started recruiting volunteers to eat the nutrient-rich pork five days a week for 12 weeks.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  Its Nutritional Physiology ";

S3[3]=" Research Centre is studying the benefits of eating pork from pigs fed fishmeal high in omega-3 fatty acids.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Fish is the only ";

S4[3]=" source of long-chain omega-3, which has more nutritional benefits than short-chain sources, such as vegetables.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  The trial will be focused on ";

S5[3]=" the effect the additional omega-3 fatty acids have on improving cardiovascular risk factors.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  Centre director Professor Peter Howe said most people ";

S6[3]=" only received one third of their daily recommended intake of omega-3 fatty acids, because of the price or accessibility of fatty fish.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S7[3]="  For women, the recommended intake is 400mg a day, while men require 600mg.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  'We know not everybody is keen on ";

S8[3]=" fish, not everyone is keen on pork, but the more alternative options we have to deliver better nutrients in our diet, the more likely we ";

S9[3]=" are to achieve the recommended nutrient intakes,' Professor Howe said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The 12-week trial is a result of 12 years of work by ";

S10[3]=" Professor Howe and will investigate how much omega-3 is absorbed into the bloodstream and whether that impacts on blood fat levels.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S11[3]=" The omega-3 enriched pork has been processed into sausages, steak, stir-fry meat, mince and diced pork.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The centre still needs several volunteers ";

S12[3]=" to take part in the trial and eat five pork meals each week.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;  Interested participants should be aged between 18 and ";

S13[3]=" 60, in good health, willing to eat pork for 12 weeks and be able to provide a blood sample once a fortnight at the university... ";

R[4]="282";

T[4]="Piggery software makes US debut";

A[4]="By ... Editor";

Dn[4]="20060222";

Dt[4]="Wednesday 22 February 2006";

Acats[4]="a02a29a46a72a92";

B1[4]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Queensland developed piggery management software is being trialed in the United States to see if it has commercial potential in that country..... ";

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S1[4]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Queensland developed piggery management software is being trialed in the United States to see if it has commercial potential in that country.<BR> ";

S2[4]=" &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries principal extension officer Peter Cook said several major piggery operators were interested in the Queensland-developed PrimePulse ";

S3[4]=" and E-Piggery software.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; He said the US trial involved 100,000 sows, with management changes being implemented to evaluate production responses.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S4[4]=" &nbsp; Mr Cook said during a visit to the US several major piggery operators indicated they were keen to see if the software had benefits ";

S5[4]=" not available in locally developed products.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; He said the acceptance of the software in the US would provide opportunities for Australian piggery ";

S6[4]=" operators.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'There could be an opportunity to incorporate US piggery management software and PrimePulse, providing the best of both worlds.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S7[4]=" &nbsp; 'The other issue is that overseas sales generate the income that all Australian software developers need to continually improve their products for domestic clients,' ";

S8[4]=" he said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Mr Cook said he expects the US trials to last about six months and generate a list of development requests ";

S9[4]=" next year.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; He said PrimePulse detects and reports changes in pig production data, saving time and effort involved in manually searching and ";

S10[4]=" analysing the vast amount of data in production records.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; E-Piggery is a 'what-if' program that sets up a virtual piggery so the ";

S11[4]=" user can evaluate the impact of planned changes on production and profitability.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The DPI&F developed the software with industry input, and it ";

S12[4]=" is now available for use in large piggeries and by private consultants throughout Australia, he said... ";

R[5]="140";

T[5]="Rice-based Diets in Pigs to reduce bacterial infections";

A[5]="By ... RIRDC 05/143";

Dn[5]="20060222";

Dt[5]="Wednesday 22 February 2006";

Acats[5]="a10a29";

B1[5]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Seven experiments were conducted in this research programme to test the general hypothesis that the incidence of post-weaning diarrhoea (PWD) could be ";

B2[5]="reduced by strategic nutritional interventions in the post-weaning period using Australian-grown rice... ";

B3[5]=" ";

B4[5]=" ";

B5[5]=" ";

S1[5]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Seven experiments were conducted in this research programme to test the general hypothesis that the incidence of post-weaning diarrhoea (PWD) could be ";

S2[5]=" reduced by strategic nutritional interventions in the post-weaning period using Australian-grown rice.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; An associated purpose of the study was to examine the ";

S3[5]=" use of rice-based diets on production indices in pigs and the physico-chemical properties of rice in the gastrointestinal tract.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The major objectives ";

S4[5]=" of this research project were the development of a database describing the physical and chemical characteristics of Australian rice and their suitability in diets for ";

S5[5]=" pigs, the commercial development and uptake by the Australian pig Industry of specialty processed rice-based diets for protection against PWD caused by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli ";

S6[5]=" (E.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; coli) and increased production, an increased understanding of the mechanisms whereby such diets afford protection, and potentially, although outside the scope ";

S7[5]=" of this project, a biomedical avenue into the use of such diets for control of enteric conditions in man.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The potential benefits ";

S8[5]=" of this research programme were an increased utilisation of Australian rice particularly in value-added markets, the development of high-value specialty or 'boutique' diets based on ";


S9[5]=" processed rice for feeding the young pig and (or) pigs in states of enteric disease, and a possible avenue for rice into the biomedical industries, ";

S10[5]=" i.e.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'functional foods'.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Rice is a staple food for much of the world's human population but has received relatively ";

S11[5]=" little attention as a possible feedstuff for the animal industries, in this case the Australian pig industry.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Rice, once gelatinised, is highly ";

S12[5]=" digestible within the gastrointestinal tract of the pig that, in turn, could enhance performance over pigs fed wheat, the most commonly used grain used in ";

S13[5]=" Australia.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Furthermore, and based on previous studies conducted in Australia and overseas, rice has potential to ameliorate PWD, a disease which costs ";

S14[5]=" the Australian pig industry millions of dollars annually.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The increasing pressure that governments are facing worldwide to ban the use of dietary ";

S15[5]=" growth promoting antibiotics and dietary heavy metals such as zinc and copper in pig diets has meant that alternative strategies for the control of PWD, ";

S16[5]=" and indeed other enteric diseases, need to be found.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; This has already occurred in the European Union, for example.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S17[5]=" Based on these previous studies, cooked white rice appears to offer promise as an alternative nutritional strategy to the current use of antimicrobial compounds for ";

S18[5]=" mitigating PWD.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; However, more research was needed in order to refine further dietary recommendations that could be made to the rice and ";

S19[5]=" pig industries regarding the feeding of rice to pigs to reduce PWD without recourse to antimicrobials in the diet.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The seven experiments ";

S20[5]=" conducted in this programme are presented as chapters, as follows: 1.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Screening and selection of rice varieties for.. ";

R[6]="125";

T[6]="Pigs at your finger tips";

A[6]="By ... Editor";

Dn[6]="20060222";

Dt[6]="Wednesday 22 February 2006";

Acats[6]="a02a29";

B1[6]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The 2005 edition of the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries popular PigTech notes is now available on CD..... ";

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S1[6]="&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; The 2005 edition of the Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries popular PigTech notes is now available on CD.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S2[6]=" DPI&F principal extension officer Alison Spencer said the CD was a national collection of fact sheets on pig production, with authors from government, private and ";

S3[6]=" commercial sectors in most Australian states.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Australian Pork Limited has provided a financial contribution to the production of the PigTech notes CD.<BR> ";

S4[6]=" &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'The CD has 149 notes providing an easily accessible information resource, especially for areas with limited internet access,' Ms Spencer said.<BR> &nbsp; ";

S5[6]=" &nbsp; &nbsp; 'Most notes are also available on or via links on the DPI&F website.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'The contributors' contact details and their website ";

S6[6]=" links are given to enable easy access to additional information.' Ms Spencer said the CD included high quality and relevant information ranging from basic to ";

S7[6]=" very technical, and was written in an easily understandable way.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'The PigTech notes are regarded as a valuable first point of reference ";

S8[6]=" by those involved in pig husbandry and performance, piggery management and training, consultants and extension providers, suppliers of goods and services, as well as agricultural ";


S9[6]=" students and lecturers,' she said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'Topics include breeding and genetics, care and husbandry, environmental management, feeds and feeding, health, housing, management, reproduction, ";

S10[6]=" soils and water, and workplace health and safety.' Ms Spencer said the latest edition included 23 new fact sheets.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 'New notes include ";

S11[6]=" topics on estimated breeding values, genetic evaluation systems for pigs in Australia, stomach tubing, grain aeration, phase feeding, biosecurity, free-range production and eating quality' she ";

S12[6]=" said.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; There have also been some major updates in existing notes on registered chemicals, nutrition, some disease topics and alliances.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; ";

S13[6]=" &nbsp; The notes can be located by search, topic area such as feeding, or by unit of competency, and links within the notes take users ";

S14[6]=" directly to other relevant fact sheets.<BR> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Ms Spencer said CDs were being distributed to Australian Pork Limited members and were also available ";

S15[6]=" directly from APL (phone 02 6285 2200) or from the DPI&F Call Centre on 13 25 23 within Queensland, 07 3404 6999 elsewhere in Australian, ";

S16[6]=" or fax 07 3404 6900... ";