NCCC042: Committee on Swine Nutrition
Statement of Issues and Justification
The overall stability of US economy continues to significantly depend on efficient production agriculture. Swine production and nutrition form inseparable components of US production agriculture. Maintenance and improvement of the current level of US competitiveness in the global market continues to be of vital importance. The evidence is that high-quality and timely swine nutrition research conducted by the North Central Coordinating Committee has made significant contributions to this competitiveness.The North Central Coordinating Committee (NCCC) on Swine Nutrition (NCCC042) has a rich history, spanning more than 40 years, of conducting cooperative research. Research conducted by the committee has provided answers to specific practical issues dealing with swine nutrition that individual stations would not likely have been able to accomplish alone. The main advantage of these combined activities is the use of similar experimental designs, diet formulations, and experimental protocols so that these normally confounding factors are incorporated into the experiment and subsequent interpretations drawn. Research published by the NCCC042 clearly represents a multi-state approach that has resulted in a scientifically productive effort by the members to provide sound nutritional recommendations to the swine industry. Current NCCC042 members have expertise in nutrient utilization, feed analyses, molecular nutrition, mineral metabolism, biotechnology, protein/amino acids biochemistry, and growth and muscle physiology. The committee has also recruited and enlisted the services of biostatistician, agricultural economist, and animal behaviorist. With the potential development and use of new technologies (low-nutrient-excretion diets, improved genetic lines, nutrition-environment interrelationships, metabolic modifiers, etc.) in the swine industry in the future, specific questions relating to nutritional requirements will need to be answered more rapidly, with more validity, and with broader implications through a cooperative, multi-state effort rather than by individual stations working independently.
The NCCC042 Committee has historically developed projects on a continuing basis rather than completely at the outset of the approval process. This allows the committee to respond quickly and promptly to issues as they emerge. The advantage of this type of approach is the quick attention given to research questions that need to be solved on a regional basis without the restriction to specific experiments revised periodically. This is especially useful considering the declining funding in the field of animal nutrition. Collaborative multi-state approach is as relevant in the future as has been in the past. The evidence is that this approach has contributed to a large quantity of quality, robust, timely research. The emphasis on applied nutrition is by design and a unifying strength is the proactive stance on identification of critical issues facing the swine nutrition industry. Members of the Committee maintain close ties to the swine and feed industries and are keenly aware of basic and applied questions that need to be answered. Representatives from these industries participate in our annual meeting to keep the Committee informed on high-priority areas of swine nutrition that are researchable on a multi-state basis. In addition, representatives from this Committee participate in the annual meeting of the Swine Nutrition Council of the American Feed Industry Association to exchange information on high priority research needs.
Many of the research studies of the NCCC042 Committee would not have been possible had they not been conducted in such a way that allowed for pooling of data among stations that produce meaningful results. For example, sow reproductive data are extremely variable and large numbers of animals are needed to detect real treatment effects. Most stations working independently could not have researched important issues due to limited numbers of animals. This type of research approach done on a multi-state basis produces results that have broad inferences across many environmental and management conditions.
The NCCC042 Committee has an enviable history of addressing important researchable problems relating to swine nutrition and has an excellent record with respect to publishing their research in the scientific literature. Research conducted by the NCCC042 committee members has made major contributions to swine nutrition and provided technical information to improve efficiency of pork production. Goals of the NCCC042 are consistent with the priority research objective of North Central Regional Association of Agricultural Experiment Stations to develop improved animal production systems that are competitive, profitable and environmentally sound. The NCCC042 is regarded as a national model for what a Coordinating Committee should be doing and how it should operate. No other regional Committee can boast of the following: record attendance of greater than 90% at annual meetings in the last 5 years; record participation in cooperative projects; record publication of 26 refereed journal papers in the Journal of Animal Science and presentation of 37 abstracts at sectional or national meetings of the American Society of Animal Science during its 45-year history. In addition, Committee members have written two editions of a comprehensive textbook entitled Swine Nutrition. Since the last project approval, there has been publication of 6 refereed journal papers in the Journal of Animal Science and presentation of 6 abstracts at sectional or national meetings of the American Society of Animal Science.
Accomplishments and Highlights Since Last Approval:
A. Held joint meetings with the Regional Research Committee on Nutrition and Management of Swine for Increased Reproductive Efficiency (S-1012) in January 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008. Discussed, during these meetings, research topics of common interest and cooperated on several research studies. In addition, subcommittee meetings were held in October 2005 at ADM Alliance nutrition in Decatur, IN; September 2006 in Indianapolis, IN; September 2007 in Indianapolis, IN; and August 2008 at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN.
B. The following feed industry/National Academy of Science representatives were in attendance during NCCC042 meetings in January 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008: Dr. Ron Moser, Chair of the Swine Subcommittee of the American Feed Industry Association in 2005; Dr. Chad R. Risley, Representative of the American Feed Industry Association in 2006; Dr. Austin J. Lewis (Board of Agriculture and Natural Resources, National Research Council) provided an excellent and detailed presentation on the history of the National Academies, the previous NRC Swine publications, and next revision of NRC Swine publication in 2006; Dr. Mark Franklin , Chair of the Swine Subcommittee of the American Feed Industry Association in 2007; Dr. Jim Sullivan, President of the American Feed Industry Association in 2008.
C. There were regular and periodic interactions between the committee and CSREES representative. In 2005 and 2006, Dr. Gary Cromwell served as the CSREES representative on the NCCC042, and in 2007 and 2008, Charlotte Kirk Baer served as the CSREES representative on the NCCC042. These CSREES representatives attended all the annual meetings and were important contributors to deliberations during the meetings. D. The committee took on the following research projects: "Evaluation of the response of barrows and gilts to different dietary lysine levels "Comparative efficacy of inorganic zinc sources for weanling pigs "Selenium content of pig tissues from various regions of the United States "Inorganic versus organic zinc sources in the diets of weanling pigs "Vitamin B supplementation of pig diets "Lactose levels in Phase 3 diets for nursery pigs "Digestibility of phosphorus in monocalcium phosphate by growing pigs "NCCC042 vitamin-trace mineral premix for starter and grower pigs "Assessment of Distillers Dried Grains and Solubles (DDGS) from ethanol production on performance and carcass quality of growing-finishing swine "Acidification of the diets of nursery pigs
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