• Livestock
• Economics

Prototypes of precision feeding systems gestating and lactating sows

Nutritional studies indicate that nutrient requirements for pregnant and lactation differ largely among sows and according tbo the stage of pregnancy or lactation, whereas in practice the same feed is generally fed to all sows in a given herd, for a given physiological stage (i.e., gestation or lactation). The availability of new technologies for high-throughput phenotyping of sows and their environment, and of innovative feeders that allow the distribution of different diets, offers opportunities for a renewed and practical implementation of prediction models of nutrient requirements to improve animal performance and the efficiency of nutrient utilisation, and to reduce feed costs and environmental impacts. The objective of this task was to develop prototypes of precision feeding systems, including the development of the decision support system (DSS) for gestating and lactating sows allowing the distribution of a tailored ration to each sow on each day.