Model simulation for pigs to predict meat production

Abstract

Modelling of growth in livestocks is a new, quickly developing field in animal nutrition. Growth modelling provides a tool to predict the animal performance and the body composition at slaughter as a response to nutrient intake. Predictability is one of the prerequisites for achieving good and safe production and it increases the profitability of meat production. The aim of the paper is to present the different types of growth models and to show their advantages, as well as to decribe a particular model that was developed by the authors. The first models were appropriate to estimate the nutrient requirements, however, the new generaton models are capable to predict the body composition at any time of the growing and fattening period (dynamic models). These recent models are based on physiological and biochemical lows therefore the accuracy of them is much better than those one’s containing empirical equations (empirical models). The authors intend to introduce a dynamic-mechanistic model for pigs, that has been developed in collaboration within University of Kaposvár and Wageningen University (The Netherlands). The developed growth model predicts the body composition of growing and fattening pigs of 20-105 kg body weight from the nutrient intake. The model represents the partitioning of digestible nutrients from intake through intermediary metabolism to body protein and fat. The novelty of the model is that it predicts not only chemical but anatomical body composition (muscle, bone, viscera and hide), thus the quality of the empty body can be better caracterised. A further aim of the paper is to show an application of the model comparing a one- and a three-phasefeeding system. The consequense of the results is that the growth model can be applied to develop feeding strategies to optimise pig production.