Swine Extension

  Episode 48: Precision and accuracy of the doser in electronic sow feeders  is now available on our Minnesota Swine & U podcast channel. In the podcast, Swine Extension Educator Sarah Schieck Boelke speaks with Samuel Berrio, who is a current graduate student in the University of Minnesota's Department of Animal Science studying Animal Science with an emphasis in Swine Nutrition. Samuel’s research involved evaluating the precision and accuracy of the doser in electronic sow feeders. Listen to episode 48 podcast (~ 16 minutes, recorded March 16, 2026). Learn more about research featured in the podcast Abstract published in Journal of Animal Science, Volume 104, Issue Supplement 3. doi: 10.1093/jas/skag107.050 .

May May 27: SowBridge program - “Gilt feeding strategies to enhance longevity & productivity” by Tyler Niblett of Texas Tech University June June 1: Ask a swine specialist: From swine health to feed - Your questions answered Zoom webinar June: 3-4:  World Pork Expo , Des Moines, IA July July 1: SowBridge program - “Water quality, biofilms, and water line management” by Gabi Doughan of Iowa State University August Aug 5: SowBridge program - “What are cull sow buyers looking for?” by Hayden Parks of The Parks Companies Aug 27-30: 4-H Livestock Encampment at the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN Aug 31-Sept. 3: Open Class Swine Show at the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN September Sept. 2: SowBridge program - “ On-farm semen management - tips and tricks” by Kara Stewart of Smithfield Sept. 19-22: Allen D. Leman Swine Conference , Saint Paul River Centre, St. Paul, MN Sept. 23 & 24: Minnesota Nutrition Conference , Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center, Mankato,...

Congratulations to the following swine faculty and educators from the swine Extension team who have had their work published recently. Zhang, G., Cao, L., Sun, Z. Q., Huang, J. Y.; Zhu, Q., Johnston, L. J., Zhang, Z. Y., Wang, J. J., Zhao, J. B. (2026). Carbohydrates: how structural features influence digestion-fermentation kinetic parameters. Food Chemistry, 512, Article 148862, Doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2026.148862. Zhu, Y. H., Garcia, A. G. Y., Tallaksen, J., Johnston, L., Li, Y. Z. (2026) Potential role of hybrid rye in crop rotations for provision of feed and bedding in organic pig production: a simulation study. Sustainability, 18(6), Article 2682, doi: 10.3390/su18062682.

 Are you a small or beginning pig farmer and have questions about swine health, nutrition, management, or day-to-day challenges? On Monday, June 1, at 6 p.m. Central Time, join a panel of experienced swine specialists for a free, live one-hour Q & A where your questions drive the conversation. Register today to receive participant details. Questions: contact Sarah Schieck Boelke at schi0466@umn.edu . This session is hosted by the University of Minnesota, Iowa State University, and Ohio State University, with funding provided by the National Pork Board Swine Educators grant program.

B y Diane DeWitte, UMN Extension swine educator Written for submission to The LAND - as April 24 2026 Swine & U column In 2015, when Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) struck Minnesota poultry, hitting the US’s number one turkey producing state especially hard, Extension livestock educators took note. Poultry producers and allied agencies developed efficient methods to depopulate and dispose of sick and dead birds. The pig industry began to prepare, in 2018, for African Swine Fever (ASF), which blew up in China but had never been in our hemisphere. Potential outbreak preparation in swine involved the creation of practical ways to depopulate and dispose of sick hogs. ASF now lives in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, under careful monitoring by the USDA. Both are viruses and both have broken out repeatedly across the globe. March 2024 was the advent of HPAI virus infection of dairy cows. Extension educators and researchers, working with UMN veterinarians, began to call ...