Pigs & Poultry
Measures to reduce risk of avian influenza come into effect
Following the detection of H5N1 avian influenza virus in a buzzard in Co. Galway this week, flock keepers are now required to apply particular biosecurity measures as a precautionary measure to help prevent outbreaks.
06 December 2024
Pig Edge: Reviewing the 2024 pig and feed prices and the outlook for 2025
Michael McKeon, Specialist Pig Advisor at Teagasc Moorepark, joins Ciarán Carroll for the latest episode of The Pig Edge with a review of pig and feed prices for 2024 and the outlook for 2025.
06 December 2024
Farm incomes forecast to rise in 2025
Published today, December 3 as part of the Outlook 2025 Conference held in Teagasc Ashtown, the Teagasc Outlook 2025, Economic Prospects for Agriculture Report, looks ahead to future prospects by forecasting farm incomes in 2025.
03 December 2024
Farm incomes move up in 2024
A new report, by economists at Teagasc, provides the latest estimates of average incomes for various farm types in 2024 and looks ahead to future prospects by forecasting farm incomes in 2025.
03 December 2024
EuroTier 2024: Latest Innovations
Pig Development Department staff recently attended EuroTier, the world's leading trade fair for animal farming and livestock management Eurotier which took place from 12th to 15th November in Hannover Germany.
29 November 2024
Is Your Farm Winter Ready?
As winter approaches, ensuring your pig farm is prepared is crucial to maintaining pig health, productivity, and staff safety. Ciarán Carroll gives a guide to help get your farm ready for the colder months.
22 November 2024
Lowering Feed Cost: Picking the Low-Hanging 'FCE' Fruit
Gerard McCutcheon, Michael McKeon, and Laura Boyle, discussed strategies to enhance feed conversion efficiency to improve cost competitiveness, focusing on health, feed access, and minimizing stress at mixing, at the recent Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference.
15 November 2024
Lowering Nitrogen Excretion from Pig Production
Dr Elizabeth Ball, a Senior Scientific Officer at AFBI, shared strategies for reducing the environmental impact of pig production by lowering nitrogen excretion and optimising feed ingredients, essential for sustainable farming practices, at the recent Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference.
08 November 2024
Brendan Lynch and Michael Martin look back on the changes and challenges of the Irish pig industry
We're taking a look back on the careers and experiences of two long-time Teagasc pig experts on this month’s Pig Edge.
06 November 2024
Lowering the Bar - Making compressed air cheaper
Kieran Keane discusses cost-saving tips for pig farms using compressed air, focusing on reducing compressor operating hours, minimizing leaks, lowering air pressure, utilizing heat recovery, selecting appropriate equipment, and maintaining compressors.
01 November 2024
Moving together towards raising pigs with intact tails
The Teagasc Pig Development Department has been awarded funding for a new European Innovation (EIP) Partnership Operational Group ‘Tailwards - Irish pig sector stakeholders moving together towards raising pigs with intact tails’, Ciarán Carroll and Edgar Garcia Manzanilla tell us more.
30 October 2024
Crossfostering and Nurse Sow Management
Hans Bundgaard, a Consultant Pig Veterinarian and co-founder of Porcus ApS in Denmark, addressed the critical topic of cross-fostering and nurse sow management at the recent Teagasc Pig Farmers Conference.
27 October 2024
Empty Days and Missed Opportunities
Louise Clarke, presenting at the recent Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference, emphasized that minimizing empty days is crucial for reducing costs and increasing productivity.
25 October 2024
DAFM US-Ireland R&D Partnership Programme Award for Teagasc to Improve Piglet Survival with AI
The Pig Development Department at Teagasc Moorepark secured funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) as part of the US-Ireland R&D Partnership Programme to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) for improving piglet survival rates.
24 October 2024
Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference 2024: Celebrating 30 years of technical advice and innovation
The 2024 Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference kicks off today, Tuesday, 22 October, at the Horse and Jockey Hotel, Co. Tipperary, and continues tomorrow, 23 October at Farnham Estate, County Cavan, starting at 12:30pm both days.
22 October 2024
Watch: Latest Updates from the Pig Research Facility
In this video update Aisling Holmes, Research Technician at the Teagasc Pig Research Facility, gives us an update on farrowing house performance, co-mingling, gilts and the upcoming Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference 2024.
19 October 2024
Listen: Celebrating 30 Years of the Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference
For the latest Pig Edge podcast, we’re diving into all the details of the upcoming Annual Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference, which is celebrating 30 years of the conference this year.
18 October 2024
Teagasc Annual Broiler Conference
Teagasc hosted the first of two Annual Broiler Conferences in the Hillgrove Hotel, Monaghan yesterday, Monday 14 October. Dr Stan Lalor, Director of Knowledge Transfer in Teagasc, opened the conference and highlighted the importance of the event in the calendar of poultry events.
15 October 2024
Reducing stress at Weaning
Gerard McCutcheon discusses the challenges and management strategies involved in weaning piglets, emphasizing the benefits of older weaning, reducing stress, and potential future developments to improve piglet growth and well-being.
11 October 2024
Growing Rye: A win-win for tillage and pig producers
Michael Hennessy, Teagasc Crops Department, and Michael McKeon, Teagasc Pig Department, discuss the potential for increased cooperation between Ireland's pig and tillage sectors by growing more rye, which benefits both pig diets and crop production, promoting a strong circular economy.
04 October 2024
What you need to know about the Nutrient Importation Storage Scheme
For this episode of The Pig Edge, we're joined by Specialised Pig Advisor, Emer McCrum, to explore what the new the Nutrient Importation Storage Scheme (NISS) means for pig producers and how it could impact their business.
29 September 2024
Slurry Spreading - Advice for Farmers and Slurry Contractors
As the slurry spreading season comes to a close across the country over the coming days, Noel Meehan and Sinead Devaney of the Teagasc ASSAP Programme explain why it is very important that farmers and agricultural contractors apply slurry very carefully so as to prevent nutrient losses to water.
27 September 2024
30th Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference: Marking a milestone
The 30th Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference is set to take place on October 22nd at the Horse and Jockey Hotel in County Tipperary, followed by a session on October 23rd at Farnham Estate, Cavan.
27 September 2024
Apply now for the Farm Technician and Farm Manager Apprenticeships
Amy Quinn of the Teagasc Pig Development Department tells us about apprenticeship programmes, which offer education and career pathways in the pig sector.
20 September 2024
A twist in the tail
Keelin O’Driscoll and Roberta D’Alessio write about the tail-biting risk assessment scheme for Irish pig farms, aimed at identifying farm-specific risk factors, and how efforts are underway to refine the tool for improved accuracy.
13 September 2024
Farmers’ and vets’ opinions sought on animal health disease and biosecurity for European study
Farmers and veterinarians in Ireland are being asked to add their voices to a cross-European exercise to find out what animal diseases are of most concern to the agricultural community.
10 September 2024
Is your crude protein costing you?
Kieran Keane writes about variations in crude protein content, which can substantially impact diet formulation costs and effectiveness.
06 September 2024
Animal welfare in focus at international conference
The 9th International Conference on the Welfare Assessment of Animals at Farm and Group Level (WAFL) takes place over the next two days in Florence, Italy.
30 August 2024
Farm safety: Farm construction and work at height
Louise Clarke emphasises the importance of prioritising health and safety on pig farms, particularly during maintenance and repair work, to prevent accidents and fatalities.
23 August 2024
Empty days - a hidden but very real cost
Louise Clarke and Ciarán Carroll discuss how "non-productive days" (NPDs) in breeding sows impact herd efficiency and profitability, emphasizing the importance of managing factors like "not in pig" sows (NIPs), repeat breeding, and environmental conditions to minimize NPDs and improve productivity.
16 August 2024