Regional pork meetings set for February

Feb 24, 2025

The annual series of Iowa Pork Regional Conferences has been a long-standing partnership of the Iowa Pork Producers Association, Iowa State University Extension and the Iowa Pork Industry Center, according to an Extension news release.

The goal to bring research and education to producers continues with this year’s topics:

Brian Blumhagen, director of operations, Altenburg Construction: What to inspect in hog barns, when to consider doing major repairs and what the repair, remodel or replacement costs will be.
Chris Rademacher, ISU Extension swine veterinarian: Composting practices to implement in your day-to-day operation and in case of a foreign animal disease.
ISU Extension agricultural engineers: Practical ways to improve barn ventilation, manage ventilation-related costs and run facilities more efficiently.
Gracie Greiner Marlow, IPPA sustainability manager: National Pork Board’s Pork Cares Farm Impact Reports provide data for the producer by tracking, measuring and monitoring conservation efforts in their operation.
ISU Extension swine specialists: Updates on issues and opportunities in respective areas.

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Video: Reducing Nursery Feed Costs Without Losing Performance - Dr. Julian Arroyave

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Julian Arroyave, a research swine nutritionist at Carthage Innovative Swine Solutions, discusses nursery feed budget strategies designed to reduce costs without compromising pig performance. He explains trials comparing high, medium, and low phase 1 and phase 2 feed budgets, including commercial validation data showing improved income over feed cost when lower-budget programs were applied under healthy herd conditions. Listen now on all major platforms!

Click here to read the full research article: https://academic.oup.com/tas/article/...

"Results showed that the low-budget program increased income over feed cost by $1.48 per pig."

Meet the guest: Dr. Julian Arroyave / julian-arroyave-jaramillo-638740129 is a research swine nutritionist at Carthage Innovative Swine Solutions, with experience in nursery nutrition, diet formulation, and commercial research trials. He completed his PhD at Kansas State University and previously worked as a nutrition supervisor at Kekén in Mexico. His work focuses on nutritional strategies that improve production efficiency while controlling feed costs. Learn more from Dr. Julian Arroyave Jaramillo on The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, available on all major platforms.