DEVELOPING THE PIG INDUSTRY

Taranaki Central Press, Volume IV, Issue 459, 17 June 1937, Page 3

DEVELOPING THE PIG INDUSTRY

HINTS TO FARMERS ON THE PRODUCTION OF GOOD LITTERS. Department of Agriculture Notes by M. J. Scott, 8.A.,8.5c.

THE FEEDING OF PIGS. Organising the Feed Supply: Among those who enquire about the feeding o£ pigs, Ithe man who is phort of feed, either beeLuse it is pot to be had, or because it is too dear to buy, is met most frequently. The maa who has abundance of feed, whatever its 'kind, is seldom enquiring. The man who has plenty of feed may have it by chance, but more usdally his plenty is the result of his own planning. Organisation or planning is not a very pleasant pastime, but it is far more necMsary with the feed supply of pigs than it is with that of cattle bnd Sheep, and for this reason pige arp not popular as a livestock project. Organisation with pigs is important because at lelast 80 per cent of the value of a pig is the teed it has.eaten.; because pigs get very lilttie Pt their feed from the paddocks — they are mostly handled; because they are fed on relatively concenti'ated and the (therefore valuable foodf tuffs; and because they hgve two ppalpprodiiction periods each year, Md so do not fit into the single yearly pffak of natural growth in the way that sows, sheep and other animals up. The questions of cost and disfrihljtipn of the feed supply require special consideration. 6kim-milk not Available all tlhe Year Where sklm-milk is the chief summer feed, the question of value or

| cost is not important, but the one ot distribution is very much so Some source of winter feed supply is essential if value is- on skim-milk for someone- rise’s profit, whenever too, much feed is bought, or if insufficient, attention is given to a cheap winter feed supply. Where grain is the chief source of feed supply the question ot distribution does not arise, since grain can be stored till it is wanted, but the question of cost is all important and cheap supplementary feeds are high quality. Both milk and grain are high quality feed, and in both cases profits are determined solely by the amounts of cheap feeds that are used. Organisation and planning of - feed supply is therefore of considerable importance. Cheap Feed the Basis of Profit: The necessity of cheap feed is not peculiar to New Zealand, but it is the very essence of profilt here, because ot the relatively low prices of pig-mW-ts. Map-j farmrs- get returns as him as 60/- per cow for pigs. Some attribute their success to the faclt that they produce weaners, others that they produce bacone ’s, others to the -thrifty strain of pigs, others to the skilful use of small quantities of grain. A consideration of their circumstances Idads one to the conclusions that not one ot those things is the prime cause of success. They are merely incidental:, and rne common factor of all successful pig-feeders is that they have used, along with heir milk and grain, cheap home

-grown feed-, viz. roots or pastures in such a quantity tE.it about half the total feed used is grain and milk. Feed Qualities Required: To feed a sow for a year and produce two litters (14 pigs) to the weaner stage, feed equivalent to about 3.000 gallons of skim-milk or tons of grain is required. To feed the sow and litters to the pork Stake (901 b. carcase)., 4 tons' of grain or its equivalent are required, and to feed the sow and litters to the bacon stage (1401 b. carcLse),. 6 tons of grain are required. When weanerA are 14/- per head and pork and bacon 5d per lb., the gross returns- for feed usedi (milk alone, grain alone or milk and grain) are about £6/12/0 per short .ton of grain, and about id per gallon of milk (on the basis of 500 gallons, 31/- per cow). This is a gross theoretical maximum, that may be achieved with grain, since gitain can be stored until 81 is required, but is certainly not attainable with milk because of its poor distribution throughout the pig-feeding year. If now, half the feed units are replaced by, pasture or roots, the costs bud returns are somewhat as follows: Using the case of porker production as an example, 4,000 gallons milk (or 2 tons grain) plus 20 tons of roots give h. gross return of 14 pigs x 901 b. x 5d per lb., — £26/13/0. Roots cost say 5/_ per ton, total £5, land) so the 4,000 gallons of milk (2 -tons gram) show a gross return of £2l/15/0., i.e., £lO/17/6 per ton for grain, or 1.30 d per gallon for skim-milk. Some may consiSer it unprofiltable to produce roots at 5/- per ton. Nevertheless the whole success of pig production depends on roots at this cheap rate, and lit is certain that if .the Toot crop at 5/- per ton is itself unprofitable because of low yield or high growing costs, Ithen roots- cannot be used to enhance the profits. Others may obpect that roots are dangerous or unsuitable pig feed, and the answer Ito that objection, is that many use them with success and satisfaction.