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Pork producers continue to share their story
The director of communications with Indiana Pork says pork producers must continue to tell their story.
Jeanette Merritt tells Brownfield “the activists and those who are against us are definitely trying to paint us in a light of what they think we’re doing wrong in the industry. We need farmers to stand up and talk about why they’re involved in agriculture, what they’re doing in their barns, how we have upmost high animal husbandry practices, and why we are good stewards of the land.”
Producers attending the Midwest Pork Conference were encouraged to share why they’re involved in the industry.
“We are working with our producers to get them to tell their stories and we’re going to take that information and put some great stories together for the upcoming year and really just educate the consumer on why pig farming is important,” she says.
Brownfield interviewed Merritt during the recent Midwest Pork Conferernece in Lebanon, Indiana.
Pig manure is excellent fertilizer. If pork producers would implement on site utilization of animal manures to grow some feed, vegetable crops and fruit trees, these ‘activists’ would not have any legs to stand on; as they are only standing on one leg now. To hel this process along technically, normal composting of manures takes time space and resources. I suggest that the manure volume can be significantly reduced to just the wet solids by filtering the liquid manure solution from washdown and collection tanks and ponds with 0.1 micron filtration using a crossflow arangement which uses very little energy to pump and returns the rejected material to the pond or tank. The filtrate is parasite and pathogen free, save for perhaps some virus material and can ultrafiltered if this is a concern. The result is a liquid plant nutrient pathogen free liquid plant nutrient which would tecnically not have to undergo the normal composting time constants as well as a significant reduction in the water content of the manure pond which would inprove digestor performance. Bottom line, if pig manure was a feedstock used on site, systems and methods would be implemented and this would naturally enhance conditions for both the farmrr and the pigs. In addition, more crops would be grown onsite, including fodder for the pigs. With an eco-scenario such as this, some of your most outspoken ‘activist’ critics, may become some of your biggest supporters.