A positive year for Pork CRC

The Cooperative Research Centre for High Integrity Australian Pork (Pork CRC) has had a year of considerable achievement, as reported at its 2016 AGM and stakeholders’ meeting.

Pork CRC completed its fifth year of an eight-year agreement with the federal government and participants on 30 June 2016. Chairman Dennis Mutton and CEO Roger Campbell agreed that 2015–16 had seen significant outcomes across Pork CRC’s four programs. Positive plans and projects are in place as it transitions towards 2019–20 and the start-up of Australasian Pork Research Institute Ltd (APRIL).

Mutton said Pork CRC’s four program areas, which centred on sow and piglet management, herd health, growing consumption of pork and delivering through a carbon-conscious industry, had continued to generate innovative solutions that delivered sustainability and profitability to Australia’s pork industry from producer to public.

Dr Campbell said in the past year, participants and researchers had made further progress in understanding and enhancing sow and piglet welfare.

“With almost 80% of Australian producers now having transitioned to group housing of gestating sows, sow confinement has been reduced by about 80%.

“We should all be proud of this achievement, which has contributed to the term High Integrity Australian Pork becoming a marketable reality and differentiation of our product continuing to be reflected in improved demand and price.”

Dr Campbell said that while margins in 2015–16 were above the previous year and higher than for most other global pork industries, Pork CRC would continue to further differentiate Australian pork to ensure the industry remains profitable and sustainable.

“Pork CRC research has improved the eating quality of Australian pork, demonstrated how effluent can be successfully converted into useable biogas, shown how grains and other ingredients can be more efficiently used through processing and NIRS technologies, and given industry tools to better understand and control common diseases.

“I am particularly pleased to report that our R&D program has more than been matched by our education and training program, which has markedly increased the capacity and capability of the industry and will certainly help secure its future,” Dr Campbell said.