Agroscope

Feeding according to requirement, proper housing and good health of sows, piglets and grower-finisher pigs are decisive for economically successful pork production and guarantee Swiss consumers a product, i.e. pork, of the highest quality. Currently, the Agroscope’s Swine Research Unit focuses on three projects: MaternitySow, HealthyPig and PigEff2... .0. The project MaternitySow aims to develop feeding strategies to limit weight loss and maximise intake during lactation while taking advantage of the resilience between lactation and pregnancy to limit the use of specific nutrients. The HealthyPig project aims to improve piglet health and reduce antibiotic use. This objective is pursued by exploring several approaches like specific nutritional strategies and innate immune stimulation. The project PigEFF2.0 is a continuation of previous studies on protein efficiency. In this project, we will now assess how pigs cope with unfavourable environmental conditions when fed protein and essential amino acids restricted diets. All the projects are partly embedded in the tree EU projects MonoGutHealth, PigWeb and Re-Livestock. In the Swine Research Unit, we are currently 5 researchers, Catherine Ollagnier responsible for the project HealthyPig, Marion Girard and Patrick Schlegel responsible for the project MaternitySow and Marion Lautrou and Giuseppe Bee responsible for the project PigEff2.0.Read More