Contact: Terry VanDerPol, LSP, 320-269-2105,
Mark Honeyman, ISU, 515-294-4621
PHOTO AVAILABLE: For a digital photo of WCROC's swine facilities, contact Brian DeVore

11/24/03
MORRIS, Minn.-As large producers become bigger factors in the pork industry, farmers who raise hogs using alternative methods are finding niche markets opening up, said one of the nation's leading experts on sustainable swine production systems recently in Morris. Mark Honeyman, an Iowa State University animal scientist, spoke at the Land Stewardship Project's "Pig Power" meeting Nov. 20 at the University of Minnesota's West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC).

"As the market gets dominated by huge operations, it creates more niche markets on the back side," Honeyman told a group of 50 farmers at the meeting. "I call it the Wal-Mart effect."

Honeyman said that is why he is excited about the sustainable swine research he has been doing at Iowa State the past 20 years. WCROC is also gaining a regional reputation for its studies on alternative pork production, he said. Both Iowa State and WCROC are doing trials on raising hogs in deep-straw, "open" systems. Such systems allow hogs more freedom of movement when compared to confinement barns, and utilize dry bedding rather than liquid manure to handle waste. The dry bedding makes these facilities less of a threat to water quality. And because the hogs experience lower stress in deep straw facilities, farmers are often able to raise them using little or no antibiotics.

Such systems are popular with farmers because of their low cost, said Honeyman. Research at Iowa State and elsewhere shows that a deep straw polyvinyl "hoop house" can be built for about one-third to one-fourth the per pig cost of erecting a confinement finishing barn.

Hoop pigs aren't as efficient at turning feed into pork, according to Honeyman's research. However, because of the lower fixed costs associated with hoops, raising pigs in deep straw is at least as cost effective as producing them in confinement. That is one reason there has been a tremendous growth in hoop barns in his home state, said the animal scientist.

"Four to five percent of Iowa pigs are finished in hoop barns," he said, adding that almost all that growth has happened in the last half-dozen years. "That is a phenomenal rate of adoption of a new technology. Farmers like these hoop barns."

Farmers are particularly excited about such systems when they generate premium prices through niche markets. Niman Ranch, which markets pork raised without antibiotics in humane conditions, now buys hogs from approximately 300 farmers, including some in Minnesota. There are also certified organic and breed-specific niche markets such as the Berkshire program. In all, Honeyman estimated there are 35 to 40 niche markets active in Iowa.

"Of course, if the niche gets big enough, then the big guys grab it," he said. "But one thing the big guys can't replicate is the story that goes with the food. People want to know what they're eating. They want to know where it comes from. Farmers like you can provide that story."

The growth in niche markets is outstripping supply, said Honeyman. In particular, companies like Niman are having a hard time finding naturally raised pigs that were born in the winter. Iowa State has had good success recently farrowing pigs during the winter in modified greenhouses.

WCROC is also researching winter piglet production using deep straw systems. During the Pig Power meeting, station swine scientist Lee Johnston showed farmers an old confinement barn at WCORC that was recently modified into a deep-straw farrowing system.

In addition, WCROC is finishing pigs in hoop houses. Johnston told the farmers that so far WCROC's research shows feed conversion efficiency in a hoop house is lower when compared to confinement. An initial feed trial this year that utilized alternatives to corn and soybeans such as oats, barley, buckwheat and field peas produced relatively lean pork in hoop barns. Johnston said if such alternative crops can be used consistently, then they can provide a ready source of straw that's needed for the bedding. That bedding, when mixed with manure, can serve as a valuable source of organic fertilizer.

WCROC soil scientist Neil Hansen said his research shows that when applied at proper agronomic rates, hog manure consistently produces better quality soil than inorganic fertilizer. This can translate into less soil erosion and fewer water quality problems. While all manure has a positive impact on soil, manure from a straw based system could provide more erosion protection by adding residue to a field's surface.

"Manure has a very positive story to tell in terms of soil quality," said Hansen.

The research being done at WCROC shows how sustainable swine production can help independent family farmers while contributing to a healthy environment and vibrant local economies, said Terry VanDerPol, a farmer and Land Stewardship Project organizer. That is why it is so critical that this kind of research receive public support, she added.

"This type of research and demonstration benefits everyone, including livestock farmers," said VanDerPol. "But it doesn't come about by accident-our land grant university system needs solid public funding for this type of research and demonstration."

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