Alcorn’s swine research farm holds Field Day
Alcorn’s swine research farm holds Field Day
Over 80 participants attended the annual Pork Producers Field Day held recently at the Alcorn State University Swine Research and Development Farm in Church Hill, Mississippi. The purpose of the event was to give swine producers the latest research tips in growing and managing pigs in pasture and feed supplementation.
The event began at 10 a.m. with a presentation by Dr. Michael Ezekwe, center director. Mr. Rondall Hawkins, ASU Extension Program and animal science specialist, introduced the guest speaker, Mr. Walter Jackson, a grazing specialist from the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS).
Mr. Jackson spoke about the economics of producing swine and offered solutions for typical small farm production questions. Following the presentation, participants toured the Swine Development Facility, which was led by Libby St. Amant, facilities manager and Patrick Morgan, research associate.
St. Amant and Morgan demonstrated how they tag and measure young piglets, and rotate pasture fields. According to Morgan, the fields just outside the gate of the facility provide a wealth of research opportunities because they use three different types of feed cycles for the swine.
“We have three different trial groups. One group is fed 100% commercial feed, another group – 50%, and the last group is fed 25% of the control group,” Morgan said. “This is how we measure what is the best output for our swine. This research will give us information about the benefits of pasture in hog production, and cost effectiveness.”
Participant Cindy Aber from Union Church, Mississippi, shared that she “received much needed information and was especially pleased with the tour of the facilities.” She added, “Seeing pasture pork experiments showed us how to grow market hogs.”
For additional information on the ASU Swine Research and Development Farm, contact Dr. Ezekwe at 601.877.3949 or [email protected] .
