USask swine welfare chair renewed for the next five years thanks to national pork industry

Jan 20, 2025

As the pork industry continues to see growth across the country, another investment is being made in the welfare of animals.

Dr. Yolande Seddon, associate professor in swine behaviour and welfare at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, was renewed as the USask Chair in Swine Welfare on Jan. 8 at the Banff Pork Seminar.

In total, fourteen industry partners from across Canada have committed to a second chair term for Dr. Seddon from 2024 to 2030. They include Sask Pork, Olymel, Maple Leaf Foods, HyLife, Conestoga Meat Packers, Sunterra Farms, BC Pork, Alberta Pork, Manitoba Pork Council, Ontario Pork, Porcima Inc., PEI Hog Commodity Board, New Brunswick Pork and Swine Veterinary Partners.

Swine Innovation Porc also contributed $50,000 during the transition period and is anticipated to make additional investments during the five-year term.

Canada produces more than 25 million pigs each year and is the third-largest pork exporter in the world, as the swine industry generates nearly $5 billion annually in exports and is a crucial component to the nation’s economic sustainability and growth.

For producers who would like to send research ideas to Dr. Seddon, it is best to reach her by email at yolande.seddon@usask.ca by January 31, 2025.

Source : Saskpork

Video: Sweetener Effects on Gut Health - Dr. Kwangwook Kim

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, including hormone signaling and nutrient transport. Listen now on all major platforms!

“Receptors responsible for sweet taste are present not only in the mouth but also along the intestinal tract.”

Meet the guest: Dr. Kwangwook Kim / kwangwook-kim is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, specializing in swine nutrition and feed additives under disease challenge models. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from the University of California, Davis, where he focused on intestinal health and metabolic responses in pigs. His research evaluates alternatives to antibiotics, targeting gut health and performance in nursery pigs.