Provimi, a Cargill business, has unveiled a new nutrition program that aims to help producers get more healthy, live pigs through the nursery phase, setting them up for success all the way to market. Based on the connection between diet and age, the Nurture program and accompanying technologies provide a new, research-based way of looking at nutrition for producers struggling with or looking to improve young pig performance.

“There have been immense changes over the past decade in the swine industry, including the current issues we are seeing due to African swine fever making its way to Asia,” says Mark Hulsebus, swine commercial director for Cargill’s Provimi business in North America. “Critical issues such as a lack of skilled labor, combined with other volatile industry factors place pressure on producers, making every pig more valuable.”

With wean-to-finish death loss rates often reaching up to 10%, the animal nutrition company says there is an urgent need for supporting young pig development and improving livability. This is especially true when 1% mortality costs approximately $1 per pig placed.

The philosophy behind the Nurture program and technologies brings an improved approach to feeding pigs based on age.

“A young pig’s digestive capability drastically changes between seven and 35 days of age,” says Matthew Ritter, PhD, swine technical director for Cargill’s Provimi business in North America. “Through industry-leading nursery trials at our global and local research facilities, our teams found new ways to design diets to match the pig’s changing needs. Weaning age is a huge factor in making these decisions.”

By feeding young pigs the right nutrients at the right time, the Nurture program helps ensure consistent performance and sets young pigs up for future success throughout the grow-finish period. In addition to feeding pigs the right nutrients at the right time, the program’s featured technologies, LipoTec and Promote AOX SD, have been shown to support healthy growth and optimized profitability.

The Provimi Nurture program is available as a complete feed with options for bases and packs. Additional customized offerings, including Nurture technologies, are also available. For pig flows facing additional health challenges, the program also offers Nurture Boost, which includes additional technologies to deliver nutrition for young pigs needing extra support.

Source: Provimi, which is solely responsible for the information provided, and wholly owns the information. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.