Pig production in the world, Europe and Italy. Cosmopolitan and autochthonous breeds. Crossbreeds. Breeding of various pig categories: reproduction; natural and artificial insemination; management, structures and facilities; hygiene and welfare; nutritive requirements and feeding; diets formulation.
Evaluation of carcasses; meat and fat quality and parameters. Seasoned products and processes. Quality control and process traceability. Free ranging system: management, benefits, difficulties
Monetti P.G.-Allevamento dei bovini e dei suini. Giraldi ed. 2001.
NRC., 2012. Nurient requirements of Swine
Other material and notes available at lesson.
Learning Objectives
Knowledge acquired:
Scientific and technological knowledges on the whole chain of pig production (from rearing to transformed products) Competence acquired (at the end of the course):
To carry out pig rearing aimed to high quality production
Skills acquired (at the end of the course):
Professionalism in the management of pig production and in products valorization.
Prerequisites
Recommended courses: Principles of animal production; Animal feeding and rearing
Teaching Methods
Total hours of the course (including the time spent in attending lectures, seminars, private study, examinations, etc...): 150
Hours reserved to private study and other individual formative activities: 96
Contact hours for: Lectures (hours): 32
Contact hours for: Laboratory (hours): 4-6
Contact hours for: Laboratory-field/practice (hours): 10-18
Seminars (hours): 0-6
Further information
Type of Assessment
Exam modality: oral;
theoretical notions and reasoning skills in applicative situations will be evaluated
Course program
Pig production in the world, Europe and Italy. Statistics, consumption and self-supply in Italy. Ethnography and ethnology. Cosmopolitan and autochthonous breeds. Crossbreeds. Basis of genetic improvement.
Sow breeding: anatomy and physiology of reproduction; natural and artificial insemination; management, structures and facilities; hygiene and welfare; nutritive requirements and feeding; diets formulation.
Piglets rearing: digestive apparatus development; neonatal care; hygiene and welfare; weaning, structures and facilities;
nutritive requirements and feeding post-weaning.
Boar rearing: management, structures and facilities; hygiene and welfare; nutritive requirements and feeding; AI in farm.
Gilt and young boars rearing: management, structures and facilities; nutritive requirements and feeding.
Slaughter pigs rearing: growth and body development; categories; management, structures and facilities; hygiene and welfare; nutritive requirements and feeding.
Carcass and meat: evaluation and commercial grading of carcasses; meat and fat quality and parameters; environmental and genetic factors linked with meat and fat traits.
Seasoned products: types, productive processes and influenced factors; evolution of chemical and physical traits during the seasoning process; quality control and process traceability.
Free ranging system: management, benefits and difficulties; quantitative and qualitative effects on the production
Practical tutorials
Use of software for calculation of rations;
Frequency in the Lab for learning the technologies to evaluate the products quality;
Visit in pig farms and in slaughterhouses