January 21, 2014

Zoetis breaks new ground in sustainable pork production
 

Animal health company, Zoetis, unveiled new research to help pork producers and meat packers produce pork with less environmental impact, specifically to reduce feed, water and land usage, through the use of IMPROVEST, which reduces unpleasant odours that can occur when cooking pork from some male pigs.

The study is based on a life cycle assessment (LCA) conducted in the United States for IMPROVEST^® (gonadotropin releasing factor analog - diphtheria toxoid conjugate), an FDA-approved veterinary prescription product. The LCA found that even modest adoption rates (33%) of IMPROVEST on American pig farms could generate significant environmental benefits1.

This outcome reinforced findings of a Lifecycle Assessment conducted in countries outside the US which supported the Environmental Product Declaration (EPD^®) granted to IMPROVEST issued by the International Environmental Consortium in 2012.  The US study was funded by Zoetis and conducted by the University of Arkansas.   

"With protein demand growing worldwide, IMPROVEST can help the entire pork supply chain be even more sustainable," said Gloria Basse, vice president, US Pork Business Unit, Zoetis. "The LCA analysis shows significant reductions in feed, water and land usage associated with use of IMPROVEST."

This year, a team of environmental experts from the University of Arkansas, The Prasino Group and Life Cycle Engineering analysed US LCA data for IMPROVEST. The analysis found that if one-third of the nation's pork producers adopted IMPROVEST, the following benefits would result:2

Better feed conversion, which could save nearly 60 pounds of feed per hog over physically castrated hogs. That equates to a savings of more than 500,000 tonnes of feed per year.

Improved feed efficiency, which could save 37 pounds of corn and distillers grains and more than 11 pounds of soymeal per hog, helping to reduce land use by 137,000 acres per year.

Reduced water use, by as much as 130 gallons per market hog raised using IMPROVEST, or 2.3 billion gallons per year.

Reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, by more than 500,000 tonnes per year, or the equivalent of eliminating GHG emissions from about 104,000 cars.
 

IMPROVEST is the first product from an animal health company to qualify for an EPD. It certifies that using IMPROVEST benefits the environment on important indicators such as global warming potential, total energy consumption, resource use and waste generation. It is validated by a third party to ensure relevant and comparable information about its environmental impact.

IMPROVEST^® is a protein compound that works like an immunisation to protect against unpleasant aromas that can occur when cooking pork from some intact male pigs. It uses the pig's own immune system to provide the same effect as physical castration, but much later in the male pig's life than physical castration is traditionally done. As a result, male pigs are able to fully express their natural potential for feed-efficient growth, with all the inherent performance advantages of intact males, for the majority of the production cycle.