The field day will start with a free lunch and a short seminar, and end with touring organic swine facilities and organic hybrid rye field.
We will showcase how integrating hybrid rye into organic swine production may help with reducing feed and bedding costs in organic pig production based on data collected at the WCROC over the last two years.
The event is free of charge, but RSVP is requested.
Tentative Agenda:
12:00 Complimentary lunch
12:30 Welcome
Organic pig research at WCROC: How did we get here?
Yuzhi Li, Professor of Animal Science
12:40 Growing winter hybrid rye: Agronomic considerations
Axel Garcia y Garcia, Assoc. Professor of Agronomy
12:50 Integrating hybrid rye into organic crop rotations, implications for
soil carbon and the environment
Joel Tallaksen, Research Scientist
1:00 Feeding hybrid rye to growing-finishing pigs
Gabriella Lima, M.S. student
1:10 Effects of hybrid rye on pork quality and consumer eating experience
Megan Kavanagh, M.S. student
1:20 Is a hybrid rye/pig production system profitable?
Megan Kavanagh, M.S. student
1:30 Questions and discussion
1:45 Tour organic winter rye production fields
Axel Garcia y Garcia
(topics discussed: crop condition, expected harvest date/yield;
past yields; past experiences; notable challenges this year; others?)
2:20 Tour organic swine finishing hoops
Gabriella and Megan
(Topics discussed: transition to organic production; housing design,
pig health and performance; identification system/demo; feed demo
[examples of feed and rye]; lessons learned; others?)
2:50 Return to Ag Country Auditorium
3:00 Adjourn