New and alternative sanitization procedures for antibiotic-free swine barns

Apr 29, 2024

Certain barns that switched to antibiotic-free production observed increased prevalence of pathogens after a few years on the program. Developing improved sanitization and disinfection procedures is an important step to reduce the pathogen load in antibiotic-free barns, which was the goal of this study.

This project identified and screened various disinfection strategies comprised of conventional and non-conventional disinfection measures. The screening phase determined calcium oxide, peracetic acid (PAA), quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs), electrolyzed water (SAEW) and alkaline electrolyzed water (AW), and silver nanoparticles as the most promising alternative measures. During laboratory-scale evaluations, the application of SAEW and PAA were identified as the most promising disinfection strategies, which were investigated further in in-barn tests.

The performance of PAA and SAEW was comparable to conventional disinfectants (Virkon) and showed longer effectivity than Virkon at 4 to 24 hours after its application. Economic analysis showed that SAEW reduced the overall cost of disinfectant used per pig while PAA costs a bit more than conventional disinfectants. This study indicates that SAEW and PAA solutions could be a better alternative to conventional disinfectants.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.