GRASS SILAGE IN DIETS FOR ORGANIC GROWING-FINISHING PIGS

Summary

In this study, organically raised pigs received an increasing proportion of grass silage up to 10 and 20% dry matter in the daily ration in the grower and finisher period, respectively, to determine the effects on feed intake and growth performance. The pigs receiving a mixture of grass silage and compound feed ingested 0.3 kg DM/d (13% of their daily ration) as grass silage and realised a similar daily net energy intake as pigs fed compound feed only. However, the silage fed pigs realised a lower daily gain (37 g/d) and a lower calculated net energy utilisation (1.6 MJ/kg) for gain and a lower dressing percentage (1.1%) of the carcass. The nutritive value of grass silage for growing pigs requires further investigation to clarify and minimise the loss in animal performance.