Proposals Confirm Critical Need for Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Research

Jan 23, 2023

Experts say the best way to help control the next emerging disease in the U.S. pork industry is to enhance wean-to-harvest biosecurity.

That's why the Swine Health Information Center (SHIC), along with the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research and Pork Checkoff, joined together last summer to fund and launch a two-year Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Research Program.

A call for research proposals was announced last October with the goal of investigating cost-effective, innovative technologies, protocols or ideas to enhance biosecurity during the wean-to-harvest phases of production.

SHIC was hopeful for a good response and they did even better, receiving more than 41 proposal submissions.

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Video: Assessing Welfare Resources During Late Finish - Dr. Anna Johnson & Emma Coursey

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Anna Johnson from Iowa State University and Emma Coursey from the University of Illinois discuss research evaluating welfare resources during the late finishing stage on commercial swine farms. They explain how feeder management, water use, space allocation, and pig health influence welfare outcomes and practical on-farm management. Listen now on all major platforms!

"Small resource issues can become larger welfare problems when multiple stressors interact across finishing barns."

Meet the guests: Dr. Anna Johnson / anna-johnson-05028a14 is the Morrill Professor of Animal Behavior and Welfare at Iowa State University. She earned her Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from Texas Tech University and completed her master's degree in Applied Animal Behaviour and Welfare at the University of Edinburgh. Her research focuses on practical solutions that improve farm animal welfare, including sow productive lifetime, animal-human interaction, environmental enrichment, and Precision Livestock Farming.

Emma Coursey / emma-coursey-183810241 is pursuing a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine after earning a bachelor's degree in Animal Science from Iowa State University. Her academic interests include swine health, production, and animal welfare, with research experience evaluating welfare resources in commercial finishing pigs.