Casein Whey as Basic Food for Successful Pig Production

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 75, Issue 1, 15 July 1947, Page 33

Casein Whey as Basic Food for Successful Pig Production

By

A. LONGWILL,

Assistant Superintendent of the Pig Industry,

Wellington.

THAT casein whey can provide the basis for economic pig production, returning good profits to the producer if management is reasonably good, is well demonstrated by the results obtained by Mr. J. D. Bruce, Horsham Downs, Waikato. His results are duplicated by many other keen pig producers who use cheese whey or casein whey as the basic food for their pigs. Those results prove that satisfactory returns from whey can still be obtained under present conditions if management is satisfactory and includes the provision on the farm of crops for wintering pigs in good condition and the purchase of meat meal to provide a balanced ration for growing pigs and breeding stock at all times.

A/JR- BRUCE farms 206 acres on the ’*■**■• Horsham Downs, some eight miles from Hamilton, and is supplying milk to the Rototuna branch of the New Zealand Co-operative Dairy Company, about a mile and a-half , from the farm. The factory is producing casein, and the casein whey, one load of which is collected by Mr. Bruce early each morning, can be used so that the pigs get a warm feed first thing in the day. In that respect Mr. Bruce prefers the casein whey to the cheese whey which he was getting when the factory changed to cheese production during the war. ' There is a widespread impression that casein whey is of little value for pig feeding, but its value is practically the same as the whey . from cheese manufacture. The results on this farm show what that value is in practice when supplementary feeding is adequate.

The stock carried on the farm throughout the year consist of 115 cows, 30 yearlings, and 30 calves; 200 ewes and their lambs, which are fattened off, being carried on the outlying and rougher portion of the farm; and six draught horses and two hacks, which are used for practically all the work on the farm. Whey is carted from the factory by. a motor truck carrying a 400-gallon tank and 10 or more 20gallon milk cans. Two trips each with 600 gallons are made daily during the flush of the season, the supply dropping to 100 gallons every other day during July. Normally all the pigs required are bred on the farm, as Mr. Bruce has found that this, coupled with cropping to provide adequate winter feed for breeding stock and store pigs, is necessary for the maintenance of healthy stock. For this purpose a herd of 16 to 18 breeding sows is kept. They are

mainly purebred Tamworths of a strain which is good for both production and conformation, but include two Large Black-Tamworth crosses, one Tam-worth-Berkshire cross, and one purebred Berkshire. Ten young gilts, from which selection will be made for replacements, are being reared from the Tamworth strain and look very promising. Besides the Tamworth two other boars are kept, one Berkshire and one Large White; both are purebred, but no evidence is available of the commercial qualities of the strains from which they were bred. Mr. Bruce intends to make use of the carcass quality evaluation scheme to get reports on the commercial qualities of the pigs he breeds. In addition to the breeding stock there were 103 pigs, ranging from weaners to bacon weights, on hand late in March. The baconers were to go off fat during April but, as the practice on the farm is to finish everything as . heavy baconers, the youngest pigs are to be carried over the winter as stores on swedes supplemented with meat meal and possibly a little maize, barley, and tallow. Piggery Layout The principle of the piggery design is central feeding to minimise the labour of handling such a bulky food as whey. The piggery has therefore been laid out on the “cartwheel” system, which has the disadvantage that the approaches to the central feeding area are likely to get worn out and very muddy in spring. The high standard of Mr. Bruce’s management is reflected in the way in which the grass runs have stood up to wear, as is apparent from the illustrations.

A meal house, with whey tank on top, is in the middle of the central concrete feeding area. The grass runs which radiate out from this hub each have a section of the feeding platform, on which is placed the feeding trough. Moveable houses are situated well back from the centre in each run. Free range on the grass run is provided for sows and litters and .all pigs .up to porker weights, but two separate fattening houses are provided, each of two units, in which the fattening pigs are finished •to t top-weight baconers.

The breeding stock occupy a paddock adjacent to the central layout and from it have access to the cow paddocks. They are fed so as to ensure that they do not lose too much condition while suckling and regain good condition quickly after weaning and going back to the boar. The condition of the ; dry sows is evident from the heading illustration. The litter results show the effect of good management, for the average for a number of years has been seven pigs weaned a litter, or 14 a sow a year. With the exception of the fattening houses, in which the baconers spend the last two months or so of their lives, all houses are of the openfronted, moveable type on runners so that during the period when no whey can be spared for the store pigs they can be shifted -to a cow paddock adjacent to. the area cropped for winter feed. That helps greatly in maintaining the grass in the fenced pig runs. Handling of Whey ' From the tank on the truck the whey runs into a circular 1200-gallon concrete trough from which it siphons, after being started by pumping, into the central tank in the piggery. A useful practice which has been followed is the addition of lime and a

trace of stock iodine at this stage.'' No system has been clearly defined so far, but it is recommended that ,1 Jib.. of the following mixture to each 100 gallons of whey be stirred up in the tank, repeating the stirring before each feeding to ensure even distribution to the pigs: lewt. of ground limestone, lcwt. of superphosphate or steamed bone flour, Jcwt. of agricultural salt, and soz. of potassium iodide (dissolved and sprinkled on during mixing). A flexible hose from the central tank enables feeding to the troughs round the feeding platform to be easily controlled. Extension pipes provide automatic feeding to the fattening houses and the dry sow pad-, dock, but the supply can be cut off so that the troughs are completely

emptied once each day and the troughs and storage vessels can be cleaned. Concentrates are measured out into buckets in the meal shed and spread on the whey in the trough at the morning and afternoon feeds. The allowance is a little less than Jib. of meal a pig. daily to weaners and stores and a little more than Jib. to fattening pigs. Only. meat meal is being used, as it is considered the most economical supplement to whey at present prices. Rearing of Litters Litters are given access to dry meal in a covered, box-type self feeder placed in . the farrowing pens. .The little pigs soon find. the meal, after which they visit the sow’s trough for a drink. The most difficult part of the rearing period is that immediately after weaning. It has been found unwise to allow pigs at that stage all the whey they will eat, as that places too much strain on the digestive system. Upsets 'follow and losses from pneumonia have been traced to overfeeding , with whey. Half a pound of meat meal a pig and 21 gallons of whey spread over five feeds a day is sufficient for a start. ' If they are given a free run on good-quality grass and measures are taken to ensure that they are always ready for a feed at feeding time, the pigs go ahead rapidly and are soon able to take full feeding. A little cod-liver oil or fat, when available, is a big help in overcoming the sudden' change in diet at weaning from the rich sow’s milk to a fat-deficient ration. The pigs continue to run out on the grass runs until, at about 120 to 1401 b. live weight, they are drafted into 'the fattening house, each lot going over the

scales to ensure that the most profitable weights are achieved. ' Pigs are all sold on hooks so that full information' on the grading is obtained. < Crops are grown regularly for wintering. This season maize and swedes were sown, but the maize was caught by a late frost and was a complete failure. However, the 3| acres of - swedes are a ' good crop and, supplemented with meat meal and such other concentrates as can be bought, should carry the 100 or so stores and breeding stock.through the winter satisfactorily,

The stores are all ; ringed before being put out into the cow paddocks, where they are run with a daily ration of. dry meal and a little whey with free access to water until it is necessary f o start the feeding of the swedes, The cropped area is on dry peat, and the pigs will be given access to the crop with run on to the grass paddocks where their houses and troughs are placed. The sows start to farrow in June and they, with their litters,,will be the only pigs kept in the main piggery until the whey supply in early spring

increases to the stage at which there is a surplus over their requirements. Then the most forward stores 1 are drafted into one of the fattening houses, the others following as the swedes are cleaned up and the whey supply permits. Pig meat production over 12 months, after allowing for. differences of stock on hand, totalled 24,0001 b. In addition, breeding stock equivalent to the production of 40001 b. of pig meat was sold. Whey used during the same period was 250,000 gallons. After deducting £260, the cost of all bought foods, including £55 for other suppliers’ whey, from the net proceeds from the pig meat, and allowing £5O for cartage of whey, the farm return was 0.7 d. a gallon of whey. That is considered by Mr. Bruce quite a fair return for the effort involved in the provision of home-grown crops and handling of the whey, as well as showing a reasonable return on capital invested. This example of good pig management shows the value of whey to the farmer who is prepared to use it efficiently. It is estimated that enough whey is going to waste in New Zealand to produce an extra 200,000 baconer pigs. Such waste is most unfortunate in view of the present world shortage of meat and fats. An effort to eliminate it is not merely a moral duty but will show a profit to the farmer and help to safeguard New Zealand’s overseas market for pig meats.