International Conference on Pig Survivability set for October 2020

The International Conference on Pig Survivability is planned for October 28 and 29 in Omaha, Nebraska, at the Hilton Omaha. The conference is part of the Improving Pig Survivability project, a five-year, interdisciplinary, multi-university project funded by the National Pork Board and Foundation for Food and Agriculture. It's aimed at reducing mortality in the U.S. swine industry by 1% or more per year of the project.

Joel DeRouchey, swine extension specialist with Kansas State University, said the conference objective is to facilitate the discussion and dissemination of the most current information relative to sow, litter, weaned pig and grow-finish mortality.

“By featuring presentations and panel discussions from industry leaders and scientific experts, we want to bring the industry together to motivate change,” he said. “We want attendees to walk away with a sense of urgency toward the issue of mortality and some practical ideas of what to do about it.”

Jason Ross, director of Iowa State University's Iowa Pork Industry Center, said attendees will hear from well-known presenters.

“The conference will feature speakers from an array of swine-related businesses and organizations that will discuss relevant, take-home messages to impact swine survivability," he said.

Just a few of the many confirmed speakers and topics include:

• Dr. Lee Schulz, Iowa State University; economics of swine mortality
• Ron Ketchem, Swine Management Services, a division of MetaFarms; trends of U.S. swine survivability
• Dr. Bill Christianson, COO of Genus PIC; trends of international swine survivability
• Gustavo Pizarro, DVM, Pipestone Veterinary Services; industry successes and failures in pre-weaning survivability
• Valerie Duttlinger, Chief Analytics Officer at Summit Smart Farms; finding the right people for the right jobs
• Dr. Fernando Bortolozzo, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; breeding herd mortality: opportunities for measurable impact

To learn more about the conference, visit the conference website. Registration will open in May.

The Improving Pig Survivability project is organized as a collaborative effort by Iowa State University, Kansas State University and Purdue University.