Close-up of a finisher pig con- suming its ration inside the Selfi- feeder GFI. Note the yellow light at the top.


An RFID ear tag.


feed costs of a swine farm, it is a place where easy gains can be made. The second reason is an environmental one. As all the pigs are normally on the same diet, feed is formulated so that even the smallest pigs will reach slaughter weight. This means that a lot of pigs will receive and eat more than they need – and thus also excrete more phosphorus and nitro- gen. To address that, Dr Gloux explains, multiphase feeding has been developed over the years, which already makes a difference. But what if feed could be supplied on the basis of the weight and further information of the individual animal? It would certainly help reduce emissions – an issue that has attracted a lot of attention in France of late. Many solutions


An ear tag attached to the pig’s left ear.


would like to be included in a special list authorities have defined to reduce emissions. And thirdly, she explains, if feed producers – or consumers – want a better understanding of where the pigs came from and what happened during their lives, it would be possible to backtrack that using the data gathered by the individual feeding station. All in all, these factors change the balance of the investment decision about RFID ear tags for finisher pigs. Prices of the tags have come down in recent years and they can be re- used as well; the slaughterhouse can simply remove and decontaminate them. The system is able to distinguish between entire males,


▶ PIG PROGRESS | Volume 37, No. 10, 2021


www.pigprogress.net/ worldofpigs


25


PHOTO: VINCENT TER BEEK


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