Swine Extension

Reprinted as posted on Swine in Minnesota blog May 27, 2025 The publication being shared is from the Torremorell lab exploring a new technology aiming at preventing the transmission of airborne viruses. The full publication is available in open access on the Veterinary Research Journal. Methods: Electrostatic precipitators (ESP) are air cleaning devices removing particles from the air and depositing them on collection surfaces. 4 pigs were inoculated with either PRRSV or influenza A virus (IAV) and placed into two isolators linked through an air duct. The air then went through an ESP prior to reaching 2 naive pigs placed in a third isolator The study lasted until the sentinel pigs were confirmed positive or the study went on for 10 days, whichever came first. Read the full list of methods and results on the Swine in Minnesota blog.

By Diane DeWitte, UMN Extension swine educator Originally printed in The LAND - as May 12, 2025 Swine & U column Producers who were raising pigs in the 1980s can clearly remember the first time they encountered the “Mystery Swine Disease,” a deadly virus that affected both breeding and finishing hogs and changed the landscape of pig production forever. First found in herds in Indiana, North Carolina, Minnesota and Iowa, it was soon named Porcine Reproductive & Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS). Historically, conservative estimates are that PRRS virus costs the U.S. swine industry more than $687 million per year (Holtkamp et al, 2013). SIX YEARS AGO SEEMS A LIFETIME! In 2019 University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) researchers, and collaborators at the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute, received a nearly $3 million grant to investigate how porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus evolves and spreads. The project was designed to help sci...

By Diane DeWitte, UMN Extension swine educator Originally printed in The LAND - as May 25, 2025 Swine & U column In the previous Swine & U article, we explored past University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine work related to the identification of Porcine Reproductive & Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) genomes and the studies which have laid the foundation for current work.   You may recall that Dr. Kim VanderWaal’s group in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine has been classifying PRRS virus genetics to better learn which viruses are related to each other, and therefore more thoroughly identify virus movement in PRRS outbreaks. Her team at the UMN, along with colleagues at Iowa State University and the USDA -ARS Virus & Prion Research Unit at the National Animal Disease Center at Ames, Iowa, recently published data from this study. One objective of this work has been the development of a fine-scale classification system which can be more easily u...

Join us for the 2025 Allen D. Leman Conference on September 20 - 23. Keynotes, breakouts and pre-conference sessions will cover a wide range of topics, including risks and opportunities in the changing economic landscape, how to move from pork supply focused to demand obsessed, health threats and disease mitigation strategies, policy changes in Washington deeply impacting swine production, gene-editing, biosecurity, product, artificial intelligence and so much more. Details are posted on the Leman Conference website . Be sure to register by August 15 to receive the early-bird registration. Leman Conference will be held at the Saint Paul RiverCentre. See Location and Accommodations for lodging information. Leman Conference is presented by the College of Veterinary Medicine and the University of Minnesota Extension.

The Minnesota Nutrition Conference is scheduled for September 17-18 at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato, Minnesota. The Minnesota Nutrition Conference is a highly regarded and well-known livestock nutrition conference in the upper Midwest. This conference delivers leading-edge, research-based knowledge to advance the sustainable production of beef, dairy, poultry and swine. This annual event is presented by the Department of Animal Science and University of Minnesota Extension and is sponsored by the Minnesota feed industry. Conference registration is now open until September 5 for $225 per person. After September 5, registration goes up to $275 per person. See the Minnesota Nutrition Conference website for hotel information.

Manure is one of the important phosphorus flows across the landscape. Although strongly associated with phosphorus overloading in U.S. waterbodies, manure is also a nutrient-rich, organic fertilizer used extensively to improve soil health. How can we manage it more effectively to capture its benefits while mitigating its adverse impacts on water quality? The webinar is scheduled for August 12 at 1 p.m. Central Time. Learn more and register for the webinar.

Funding is still available through the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Veterinary Services and NPB to equip swine exhibition sites, cull sow market stations and processing facilities with RFID tag reader equipment. This program helps improve traceability and supports the transition to RFID tags. Swine exhibition sites can apply for handheld RFID readers, while cull sow market stations and processing facilities may receive both panel and handheld readers (up to five panel readers and four handhelds per site) with a valid premises identification number (PIN). Funding is available through September 14. Contact Dr. Brent Pepin , NPB director of swine health for more details.

PQA version 6 was launched at the beginning of June. With that, all current PQA Advisors need to recertify in version 6 to maintain their PQA Advisor status by August 31 (regardless of when certified in version 5). Emails granting online recertification access have been sent from the National Pork Board. If you didn’t get that email, let one of your Minnesota PQA+ Trainers know. Trainers:  Sarah Schieck Boelke , Diane DeWitte , or Lee Johnston .

PQA+ Advisors are the folks who work directly with producers to educate them on the PQA+ program and will help producers obtain PQA+ certification and PQA+ site status at their respective production sites. Two PQA+ Advisor training dates are planned for NEW advisors or those who let their PQA+ Advisor status lapse: September 9 - 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Minnesota Pork Board Office, 151 Saint Andrews Ct. Ste. 810, Mankato, MN. Complete and submit the application by September 2. November 18 - 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Minnesota Pork Board Office, 151 Saint Andrews Ct. Ste. 810, Mankato, MN. Complete and submit the application by November 11. Contact Diane DeWitte ( stouf002@umn.edu ) or Sarah Schieck Boelke ( schi0466@umn.edu ) for a PQA+ Advisor application. Applications can also be found on MN Pork’s website . Scroll to the bottom of the page to see the link to the application. Individuals wishing to attend the training session must meet the qualifications to become a Certified PQA+ Advisor. Be a v...

A few in-person Pork Quality Assurance Plus (PQA+) and Transport Quality Assurance (TQA) certification sessions are scheduled for 2025. The sessions include the following dates and locations: July 15 : Olivia, MN - Renville County Government Center, 105 S 5th Street Nov. 11 : Mankato, MN - Minnesota Pork Office, 151 Saint Andrews Court, Suite 810PQA+ certification is scheduled from 9 a.m. to noon and TQA from 1 to 4 p.m. at all locations unless noted otherwise. If you need to renew your PQA+ or TQA certification and a date listed above does not accommodate your schedule, or if your farm has a large group of employees needing certification, please contact Colleen Carey at the Minnesota Pork Board office at 507-345-8814 or colleen@mnpork.com to schedule an alternative time for training. University of Minnesota Extension provides classes in partnership with the Minnesota Pork Board. PQA+ and TQA certification can be completed online in a self-paced course too. Your UMN Swine Extension ...

 Congratulations to the following swine faculty and educators from the swine Extension team who have had their work published recently. Archer, C. A., Forster, S. L., Mote, B. E., Schmidt, T. B., Anderson, J., Johnston, L. J., & Li, Y. Z. (2025). 213 Differences in growth, tail injury, and immune markers among tail-biting, non-biting, and control pigs with intact tails . Journal of Animal Science , 103: 40-41, Supplement 1, Abstract: skaf102.04. Doi: 10.1093/jas/skaf102.044. Archer, C. A., Forster, S. L., Mote, B. E., Schmidt, T. B., Johnston, L. J., & Li, Y. Z. (2025). Identifying tail-biting pigs in small and large groups of growing-finishing pigs with intact tails. Journal of Animal Science , 103, Supplement 1, Abstract 40. Doi: 10.1093/jas/skaf102.005. Forster, S. L., Archer, C.A., Li, Y. Z., Johnston, L. J. , Anderson, J., Mote, B. E., & Schmidt, T. B. (2025). Use of the NUtrack System to evaluate behaviors of growing-finishing pigs with intact tails classifie...

Farming can be a stressful occupation. It is important for farmers to take care of themselves and their families. Minnesota has numerous resources to help with those coping with farm and rural stress. Minnesota Farm and Rural Helpline Phone: 833-600-2670 for a 24/7 confidential and free chat with trained staff and volunteers Text: FARMSTRESS to 898211 Email: farmstress@state.mn.us Free, confidential, 24/7. If you or someone you know is struggling with stress, anxiety, or depression, reach out to the Minnesota Farm and Rural helpline. Trained counselors answer calls, and sometimes it’s easier to talk to someone you don’t know. And if you are experiencing business, financial, or legal problems, they can connect you to that kind of help. Minnesota also has two Rural Mental Health Counselors who work with farmers throughout Minnesota. No cost and no paperwork! Monica McConkey: 218-280-7785 You can explore additional people and organizations ready to help on MN Department of Ag's rural ...

July July 15: PQA+ & TQA certification, Olivia, MN August Aug 6: SowBridge program Aug 12: Sustainable Phosphorus and Manure Management webinar Aug 21 - 24: 4-H Livestock Encampment at the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN Aug 25 - 28: Open Class Swine Show at the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN September Sept. 3: SowBridge program  -  “Depopulation preparedness” Sept 9: PQA+ Advisor certification , Mankato, MN Sept. 17 - 18: Minnesota Nutrition Conference , Mankato, MN Sept. 20 - 23: Alan D. Leman Conference , St. Paul, MN October Oct. 1: SowBridge program - “Where’s the draft coming from?” November Nov. 5: SowBridge program - “Farrowing stall environment management” Nov. 11: PQA+ & TQA certification, Mankato, MN Nov. 18: PQA+ Advisor certification , Mankato, MN

Episode 46: PRRS virus Classification is now available on our Minnesota Swine & U podcast channel. In the podcast, Swine Extension Educator Sarah Schieck Boelke speaks with Drs. Kim VanderWaal and Igor Paploski about PRRS virus Classification. Both are faculty members in the University of Minnesota Veterinary Population Medicine department. PRRS virus Classification is basically naming of the PRRS virus according to the genetic sequencing of the virus. Kim and Igor explain how PRRS viruses were classified previously and changes to how they are being classified based on their work. Listen to episode 46 podcast (~35 Minutes; recorded June 16, 2025) Learn more about PRRS virus classification featured in the podcast Swine Health Information Center fact sheet on the epidemiological insights on the PRRS-Loom Variant webtool Link to PRRS-Loom Variant webtool Journal article published in Epidemiology, Volume 10, Issue 2. doi: 10.1128/msphere.00709-24