Sell more uniform pigs
Packers want consistently-sized pigs and they’re willing to pay a premium for them. However, lack of uniformity continues to be the No.1 cost to the industry, according to the National Pork Board (NPB). NPB estimates that the average pork producer loses $1-3 per head on sort loss alone. With a FAST I™ (Farmweld Automatic Sorting Technology) facility, you sell the size of pigs the packer wants. Many producers report achieving zero sort loss or minimum sort loss on the very first load of pigs they sell from a FAST II barn.

Sell more pounds of pork
As recent Purdue University studies point out, producers with flexible marketing schedules, make the most profits when they can sell their faster-growing pigs in the top end of the packer’s premium matrix. FAST II allows you to precisely monitor pig weights and select the heaviest pigs in the barn for market.

Feed pigs according to weight
Split-weight feeding can be used to overcome a variety of growth and feeding challenges. For example, if reducing barn days is a critical goal for a system, you may want to feed a more potent diet to lighter pigs to accelerate their growth. To reduce feed costs, you may wish to feed the faster-growing pigs a least cost ration. Or, perhaps you wish to use certain additives, such as Paylean™ , for part of the feeding period. FAST II allows you to sort the pigs into two feeding groups and maintain the desired split for specific feeding regimens.

Utilize space better
Minimal alleys. FAST II barns require no or minimal alley space so there’s about 550 sq. feet of added useable space in a typical 1,000-head barn. The savings in useable space means more pigs can be stocked or there is more space for the same number of pigs. The added inventory or improved daily gains offsets added equipment costs.

No blind corners. Barns with smaller pens and more gating naturally have more corners and inaccessible spaces than big pens. The larger, more open pens allow more access to useable space.

Improve meat quality
Meat scientists have shown that feed withdrawal 12 to 24 hours prior to slaughter reduces the incidence of PSE or pale, soft and exudative (watery) pork. Feed withdrawal reduces the amount of available glycogen or carbohydrate stored in the tissue. During the post mortem period, glycogen is converted into lactic acid. Production of lactic acid is what drives down the pH, increasing the incidence of PSE. FAST II facilities make it easy to withdraw feed from only the animals ready for market.

Make a positive impact on animal welfare and health
With the Swine Welfare Assurance Program (SWAP), the industry is in the midst of a major effort to examine its core values in animal handling practices. Pigs in FAST II pens are in housed in very large, 500-700-head pens. The bigger pens give pigs more walking and fleeing space and allow them to choose their own microenvironment. For example, if the pig is warm, he can move to a cooler area. By being able to better regulate their own environments, veterinarians say, pigs are better able to avoid or cope with stress. Less stress creates healthier pigs.

Move pigs easier
A key reason that producers tell us they these facilities is because pigs in FAST II facilities move so well. Pigs in large pens are accustomed to moving longer distances over the course of the feeding period. On shipping day they are naturally more willing to get up and go. Pigs may move easier through loading chutes because they are accustomed to walking single file through the FAST II scale. When pigs load onto the truck with less stress, they stay calmer during the ride. That contributes to fewer deads and downers and improved meat quality.

Reduce pig stress
Animals from large pens exhibit fewer signs of stress and aggression than pigs in smaller pens. Swine behavior expert Harold W. Gonyou, Prairie Swine Centre, Inc., calls it the “big city theory.î Pigs in large pens don’t recognize all their neighbors so they are more likely to go about their own business. They simply pick on each other less than pigs in smaller groups, according to Dr. Gonyou. This behavior likely follows them into the slaughter truck and packing plant. According to Dr. Gonyou, pigs from large pens aren’t bothered as much when sorted into a new group as pigs initially from smaller groups with rigid social hierarchies. Less stress means better pig performance and meat quality.

Reduce sorting and loading labor
The FAST II system sorts pigs for market so you don’t have to spend time eyeballing and marking pigs to be shipped. The system does it for you. When you want a load of 180 pigs, the FAST II scale will automatically estimate the sort weight to deliver the heaviest pigs in the barn. When the truck arrives, the animals are all confined in the sort pen, designed next to the load-out chute. So there’s minimal labor involved with loading. Many producers report they are able to load a truck by themselves.

Spend less time washing gates and trucks
With less gating in a FAST II barn, it takes less time to thoroughly clean a barn than in traditional setups. Typically FAST II barns require less gating than a traditional barn. A producer in Minnesota estimates it takes him about four hours less to wash an 800-head FAST II barn, compared to wash a 200-head barn. Trucks are easier to clean, too, because pigs that have fasted for several hours aren’t going to dung in the trucks as much as pigs that ate more recently.

Paylean™ is a registered trademark for Elanco’s brand of ractopamine.

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