Reduction of boar taint - the practical way

Summary

The aim of organic pig production is to ensure high animal welfare and natural products. Banning castration is thus a logical step forward, but the risk of boar taint in the meat is a major barrier for marketing meat from entire male pigs. Is it possible to use genetic tools and breeding strategies to prevent boar taint? What is the effect of feeding, management, housing and hygiene? Is it possible to process the meat to minimize the risk of boar taint? These issues will be discussed based on the results from the research project NOCAST, as well as other on-going Danish research projects on entire male pigs.
Susanne Støier (DK): Boar taint – detection, consumer response and product quality
Hanne Maribo (DK), Bent Borg (DK) and Rikke Thomsen (DK): Reduction of boar taint – the practical way.
Anders Strathe (DK): Prevention of boar taint by means of genetics and breeding
Theme 2: Outdoor production of growing-finishing pigs, provision of roughage / Chaired by Jan Tind Sørensen
Use of roughage and outdoor production are two very important characteristics in organic livestock production. How does the use of roughage affect health and performance in growing-finishing pigs? Is it possible to encourage outdoor pigs to find a large part of their food directly in the field where they are kept, and how does this influence pig performance and meat quality? These issues will be discussed on the basis of results from two major research projects, SUMMER and ICOPP.
Liisa Voutila (FI): Effect of roughage on pig health and performance
Anne Grete Kongsted (DK) and Margrethe Therkildsen (DK): Outdoor growing-finishing pigs: effect of genotype and feeding strategy on animal behaviour, performance and meat quality
Theme 3: Environmental impact and animal welfare / Chaired by Jan Tind Sørensen
Robust and competitive organic pig production must minimise environmental impact as well as ensuring good animal health and welfare. In theory, improving animal health and welfare reduces environmental impacts through decreased medicine use, improved growth rates and feed conversion efficiency. Is it possible to verify these hypotheses on working farms? The relationship between animal health, welfare and environmental impact will be discussed based on the results from the Core organic II research project ProPig including data collection on these aspects on 75 organic pig farms across Europe. More specifically, it will also be discussed how management practices may affect parasite transmission and thus animal welfare within organic systems (PAROL and NOCAST projects).
Christine Leeb (A): Assessment of animal welfare and environmental impact.
Helena Mejer (DK): Parasite impact, transmission and control
John Hermansen (DK): Introduction to group discussions