5 prize-winning pig innovations at EuroTier

At a pre-show press event in Göttingen, Germany, the major prize winners were announced for EuroTier, which will be held 13-16 November in Hanover, Germany. In total there were about 250 innovations eligible for a medal. Eventually the jury awarded 1 golden medal and 25 silver medals. The relevant prize winners for pigs are listed below.

Speedy trough suction unit

Meier-Brakenberg, Germany; Hall 16, stand G04

The manual emptying of a trough can be cumbersome and often not 100% effective, paving the way for bacteria or mould. The Speedy trough cleaner, connected to the gun of a high-pressure cleaner, can remove feed remains from troughs quickly – both wet and dry feed. Once the feed is sucked out, it can be caught in a container or drained off into the manure. After emptying, the trough can be cleaned quickly with the washing lance by simply switching over to the cleaning nozzle. The innovation is said to ensure optimum hygiene as the next ration of feed remains fresh longer.

Taintstop

Dumoulin, Belgium; Hall 22, stand C13

Belgian feed company Dumoulin will showcase a feeding concept aimed at reducing boar taint. By feeding certain carbohydrates, in particular inulin or starch with a low small intestine digestion, boar taint can be reduced. The feed concept influences bacterial digestibility in the large intestine and the related reduced production of skatole and other indole compounds. The use of the concept is said to lead to a considerable reduction of the skatole contents, and therefore to much lower odour impairment of meat. It has already been tested in several practice-oriented feeding tests.

The feed concept that reduces boar taint. Photo: Dumoulin

DR 1500 Drive Wheel

Big Dutchman, Germany; Hall 7, stand B21

Metal components in a feed chain typically have noisy starting up problems. That is why Big Dutchman introduces the new DR 1500 Drive Wheel which is made of stable, elastic plastic.

The elasticity of the material leads to load-dependent traction over 2 teeth of the drive wheel when starting up. It therefore runs virtually jerk-free, which is gentle on chains and drive wheels and decreases wear. With long transport distances or when transporting large quantities of feed, the elastic teeth tilt slightly toward the rear, the chain fits more closely on the drive wheel and the power transmission is distributed among a total of up to 7 additional teeth. Now even longer transport distances are possible – up to 500m long conveyor chains can be pulled.

The wheel in function. Left shows a light load, with only 2 teeth having to pull. The right shows a heavy load, as all 7 teeth need to pull. Photo: Big Dutchman

Pig T pig toilet

Big Dutchman, Germany; Hall 7, stand B21

Another innovation from Big Dutchman: a pig toilet, with direct separation of urine and faeces. The toilet comes with a tarpaulin-secured pen floor, enabling urine and faeces to be separated directly after being excreted, which reduces ammonia emissions. The toilet consists of a conveyor belt made of plastic elements. Urine and other liquids flow through openings between the individual plastic elements into a catch trough within the supporting structure and are routed there into a separate storage tank. The faeces, litter or e.g. straw are transported out of the bay by the conveyor belt and from there can be removed from the barn with a faeces collection duct or additional conveyor belts. In the process, the pigs in the bay can continue to stand on the conveyor belt; no biting or kicking damage results on the flat plastic surface.

A young pig on the pig toilet. Photo: Big Dutchman

EZ Clean Corner for chain feeding systems

Hog Slat, USA/Germany; Hall 16, A11

Especially the corners of dry feeding systems in risers from the silo into the barn tend to constantly fill up. Checking and cleaning is usually carried out by complicated unscrewing and cleaning of the corners from above. The EZ Clean Corner from Hog Slat is a corner for chain feeding systems with a diameter of 60mm and is equipped with a transparent cleaning door. This enables both quick visual inspection from the outside and opening downward to easily remove accumulated dirt or blockages. The corner consists of reinforced polymer plastic; the transparent cleaning door is manufactured of polycarbonate. Already existing chain feeding systems can be retrofitted with this new corner.

Cleaning corners made easy. Photo: Hog Slat

One more award and EuroTier projections

At the press conference, the organising DLG said that 1 more award, specifically for animal welfare, will be given away. This will happen during the EuroTier show at the Animal Health Event, on November 15.

The DLG also announced that the projected number of exhibitors is 2,526, only slightly lower than the 2016 edition which also involved a poultry exhibition. The show will be approximately 280,000 m². Most prominent exhibiting country will – of course – be Germany (1,484), followed by China (254) and the Netherlands (207). Exhibitors from 62 countries will be present in Hanover.

Pig ingredients to look out for at EuroTier

Special theme this year will be ‘Digital Animal Farming’ – or how use of sensors and data management can help enhance production monitoring, animal health and welfare, and transparency.

Another interesting feature at the show will be ‘Whole-farm concepts for keeping pigs’. The aim of this initiative, to be found in Hall 16, is to draw attention on novel housing concepts for finishers.