Schauer Agrotronic presents top innovations for pig farming at the Eurotier 2024 trade fair to mark its 75th anniversary

The condition of pregnant sows is an important factor for economic success. Weight alone without body condition is meaningless. However, it is very difficult for barn staff to make this assessment. This is why animals are often fed according to a standardised feed curve. With Body AI Score, automated condition assessment and condition-adapted feeding is possible for the first time.

Body AI Score is a camera-based system that can be used in the feeding station, the selection station or as a stand-alone device during stabling. The animal is recorded by camera from several positions, analysed and the condition of the animal determined. The AI (artificial intelligence) supported analysis of the animal is based on a specially created standard, which has been developed and calculated through countless practical measurements. It can be installed in the feeding station itself or in CID Selection. This enables continuous measurement of the condition curve and early adjustments to the feed curve. However, it is also possible to equip a separate stand-alone station, which is positioned in the raceway, with which all animals are assessed before being driven into the holding pen.

Until now, the condition of the animal could only be evaluated by measuring the thickness of the back fat. This is extremely time-consuming and difficult to reproduce, as this measurement has to be carried out at specific, precisely measured points. Automation is not possible due to the high individuality of the animals. Another approach is to record the animal's weight. However, this method only allows limited conclusions to be drawn about the condition of the animal, as the animals can be of different lengths and heights and therefore their weight is of little significance. Furthermore, the weight also fluctuates greatly depending on whether the sow has just consumed water or feed, defecated or urinated. This leaves only the trained eye of the operator. External staff are often not qualified to correctly assess the animals. With Body AI Score, it is possible for the first time to automate the condition assessment and assignment of the correct feed curve, thereby optimising performance and costs.

It is not sufficient to assess the condition of pregnant sows based solely on weight. This requires a correct assessment either by the trained eye of the barn staff or, for example, by measuring backfat thickness, However, this method often produces inconsistent results. The barn staff judge the animals according to criteria such as ‘not too lean’ or ‘not too fat’. The amount of feed required depends on the condition of the sows. This is significantly influenced by the sow's condition. However, as the barn staff often change on larger farms, the sows are often fed the same amount.

If the animals are not fed properly, they become fat, waste feed or are too thin. Automatic control helps to avoid this. The animals are fed in the way that is best for them. This saves money and makes the animals more fertile.

Until now, sows in “walking-back” electronic feeding stations could only be marked with one colour in stable groups. They had to be selected out of the group manually if required. With CID Selection, pregnant sows can be automatically selected even in stables with “walking-back” feeding stations. This saves a lot of time and resources with relatively little additional effort and space requirements.

Pregnant sows in gestation could be easily sorted out of the herd with conventional “walking-through” feeding stations through subsequent selection. This was even necessary in stable sow groups if, for example, a sow needed medical treatment was showing problems. In dynamic sow groups, it was also necessary to move the heavily pregnant sows from the gestation pen to the farrowing pen. “Walking-back” feeding stations are now increasingly being used. In these systems, the animal enters the feeding station via a rocker or a split door exits backwards after eating. Because there are comparatively more feeding places available, experience has shown that it is easier to train sows with this system than with “walking-through” feeding stations. Unfortunately, these stations do not currently perform any selection. The new, automatic CID Select makes work much easier and reduces stress for the animals.

The initial attempts by piglet producers to feed sows ad libitum to supposedly save (investment) costs have failed. Rationed feeding of pregnant sows has proven to be a good solution to optimize feed costs and prevent pregnant sows from becoming excessively fat. In addition to the traditional electronic sow feeding stations for large, stable or dynamic groups of sows, so-called “walking-back”electronic feeding stations are increasingly being used. In some cases (Schauer Compident Simultan), these can be equipped with colour marking functionality, but this is not a common feature. Automatic selection from the sow group is not possible with this technology. Currently, a person has to manually search for the sow by in entering and walking through the sow pen. The new CID Selection is an additional selection sluice that is installed in stable or dynamic sow groups in the waiting pen. The CID Selection thus enables the automatic selection of individual sows from the sow group.

With CID Selection, automatic selection of animals can also be achieved at “walking-back” electronic sow feeding stations. For this purpose, an additional selection station (sluice) is installed for each sow group. In the selection pen, a lure (dextrose or feed) is offered to the pregnant animal via a dosing device. The lure can be provided in liquid or dry form and is administered in a predetermined small amount once or several times a day. This is intended to ensure that each animal visits the selection pen at least once a day. The sluice-station is equipped with an entrance and exit door. If an animal enters the station, it is recognized and the lure feed is dispensed. If the animal is marked for selection, the entrance door closes and the exit door, which leads into the selection pen or the corridor, opens. If the animal is not intended for selection, the entrance door remains open and the animal can leave the station and return to the group pen.

Together with numerous project partners from research and science, above all HBLFA Raumberg Gumpenstein, the low-emission NatureLine animal welfare fattening barn was investigated over a period of two years as part of the SaLuT research project. The results are impressive. Ammonia and dust emissions can be reduced by 80% and odour by more than 90% compared to a conventional fattening barn. Schauer Agrotronic has realized around 100 stables. The HofGenie gold award recognizes the success of the concept in reducing emissions. The results will soon also be available in Germany for approval and licensing procedures.

The routine docking of pig tails is prohibited in the EU. A key factor in reducing stress is slow feed intake. It has been shown that an initial animal feeding place ratio of 1:1 and dry feed produces the best results. The new dryfeed long trough sensor enables automatic feed dosing for the first time based on the animals’ consumption.

With the dryfeed-long trough sensor, the feed can be distributed in a long trough to enable as many pigs as possible to eat at the same time (animal-feeding place ratio 1:1). Since no water is added with dry feeding, common trough sensors for level detection, such as with liquid feeding, cannot be used. A system has now been developed that makes it possible to measure the level in the trough not just at specific points, but over a large area. The system can be used with any trough system (stainless steel, polymer concrete, etc.) and can be retrofitted to existing long troughs. The can withstand animal activities such as eating or rooting or moisture that enters the trough through saliva, for example. This measurement can be used to draw conclusions about the feed that is still in stock.

Animal welfare stables with separate functional areas (see NatureLine low-emission animal welfare pig stable, www.nature-line.com) work best with dry feeding, with the animals eating as simultaneously as possible.

The current state of the art offers a large number of ad libitum dry or mash feeders with a reduced animal-feeding place ratio. In order to provide an appropriate feeding place for simultaneous feeding, several expensive feeders would have to be set up. The setting of the dosing slides had to be continuously adjusted to the animal weight or the flow properties of the feed. Only point-based measuring methods were available for measuring the fill level. However, this meant that the actual situation in the trough could not be depicted, especially when dry feed had poor flow characteristics. This inevitably led to either overfilling of the trough and thus feed wastage, or insufficient feeding.

This measuring method allows pigs to be fed according to their needs without overfilling the trough and thus feed wastage underfeeding. There is no need for time-consuming adjustment of sliders, as the system optimizes itself. By distributing the feed multiple times at specific points on the inexpensive long trough, all animals can eat at the same time. An animal-feeding place ratio of 1:1 would only be possible with automatic feeders by using several machines, which is costly. At the same time, the animals are kept busy eating for longer when using dry feed. This makes the system ideal for producing fattening pigs with long (curly) tails. Schauer is the first company to develop a large-area level measurement for dry feed with the long trough sensor. This prevents the through from overfilling. Between doses, the trough is emptied and thus kept clean. Feed cost savings and optimized pig growth can be realized for a better economic result.

Spotmix SmartWater Management is an automatic water dosing control system. This allows feeding at each feeding point automatically according to the desired water:feed ratio. This follows a ratio specified in the feed curve, which is adjusted to the weight of the animals. This helps - even untrained - stable staff, to avoid incorrect settings and thus optimizes feed intake.

The system is based on a central water control unit and a self-learning, complex AI algorithm which calculates and regulates the exact water flow, taking into account all water consumption at the feeding point (feeding water, cleaning water, etc.). This means that feed and water is dosed at the trough in exactly the specified ratio. Thanks to the cost-effective, central arrangement of the system and the use of low-maintenance, dirt and limescale resistant components, no running costs are to be expected. Spotmix SmartWaterManagement thus regulates the different requirements of the pigs at all ages according to their needs. The fully automatic system significantly reduces the workload on the stable staff, avoids setting errors and thus optimizes the pigs' feed intake, thereby increasing profits on pig farms.

In feeding systems with air transport of the feed (Spotmix and similar), water was previously adjusted at each feeding point by manually adjusting a control valve or by activating the water for different lengths of time. This meant that adjusting the setting was not only time-consuming, but also required expert skills. If water was regulated by controlling the dosing valve for different lengths of time, the mixing of water and feed was extremely inhomogeneous. Cleaning water was not taken into account at all. If too much or too little water was dosed into the feed trough, feed intake could be negatively affected.

By using Spotmix SmartWaterManagement, the optimal water:feed ratio corresponding to the weight of the animals is always fed throughout the day. Not only the water required for feeding is taken into account, but also any water used at the feeding point (cleaning, etc.). There is no need for time-consuming, manual adjustment of the water valves at the feeding stations. Instead, the water:feed ratio specified in the feed curve is used. In addition to the individual adjustment of the feed composition, animal health and thus animal performance can be raised to a higher level. Further costs can be saved due to the reduced workload.

This innovative concept enables pig farming that promotes animal welfare, conserves resources and is close to nature. The animals can - just like in nature - process the feed themselves and eat it together. The excellent feed utilization is based on a slow feed system with the resulting optimized salivation of the feed provided

The pigs in the pen group have to process an evenly distributed amount of feed on the multi-level cone. The feeding area has a three-dimensional design and gives weaker, lower-ranking animals the opportunity to eat in the lower and middle areas, while dominant pigs concentrate on the upper part and are therefore unable to defend the entire feed space. This enables the pen group to gain weight evenly. Compared to the longitudinal trough, the feeding order is established more quickly and the group dynamics are maintained.

Since the machine continuously dispenses only the smallest amounts of feed, the high-quality feed is better salivated, intensively pre-digested and thus optimally utilized.

The significantly longer feeding time (up to 50 minutes per feeding) significantly increases the intensity of activity, significantly reduces tail biting, reduces weaning losses to almost zero and improves animal welfare.

The current state of the art offers a large number of ad libitum and rationed dry and/or mash feeders with a reduced animal-feeding place ratio of 1:4 to 1:8. In order to provide an appropriate feeding place for (almost) simultaneous feeding (in the pre-fattening period in a ratio of 1:1, in the final fattening period 1:2), several feeders would have to be set up. The costs and effort involved are very high. In addition, the mash (dry-wet) feeders require more cleaning effort, as otherwise unhygienic conditions can arise more quickly (spoiled residue feed, which has to be removed manually). Liquid feeding carries the risk that the feed pulp diluted with water will have a significant negative impact on stomach acid and its function in the digestive tract. Stomach acid is of the highest priority in the entire digestive process and is able to buffer toxic substances that are possible even with the best feed preparation.

The feeder is available in two sizes, which can be selected according to the space required and the width of the pen and is suitable for all ages from weaned piglets to heavy fattening pigs. It can be operated in both rationed and ad libitum mode and can be connected to existing feed conveyor systems. Up to 11 fattening pigs/21 piglets can be fed rationed and up to 44 fattening pigs/80 piglets can be fed ad libitum. At our own test farm, the Biohof-May organic farm, a "semi-ad libitum feeding" with feeding intervals has proven to be advantageous, with the machine being emptied in between.

The patented design of the DIMA Feeder dry feeder allows for easy, stepless adjustment of the dosage. It can be used with different types of feed (from floury to pellets) and can be adapted to suit the pen group. The pigs are active, spend a long time eating and are less concerned with the tails of other pigs. Better animal welfare and greater success in modern pig production can be achieved at the same time.

Pigxcel-ID opens up a new dimension for pig farmers, who can now monitor individual pigs around the clock. The system helps farmers to identify problems caused by illness and injuries at an early stage and to take action against them. Pigxcel-ID ensures better animal welfare and enables better weight gain. The AI-supported camera system records the individual weights of the pigs in the pen and supports the farmer with visual selection aids to more easily select the pigs ready for slaughter from the pen at the optimal time.

Pigxcel-ID uses camera technology and AI to help pig farmers globally to take animal welfare to the next level by providing early indications of deviations from growth expectations due to disease, injury, lack of feed, etc.. This means that farmers can take early action to minimise animal suffering and financial loss. Pigxcel-ID provides a 24/7 monitoring system of the life and growth performance of each individual pig. The AI software integrates an AI-generated colour marker into the real-time image on the screen of the mobile device or a ‘real’ colour marker through an additional device installed in each barn. Later in the lifecycle, farmers will know which pigs need to be sorted for slaughtering for best price and quality. Sorting will be simplified by marking the target animals either on screen or by real colour marking. The system allows you to monitor and record deviations during periods when no workers are in the pig houses.

In fact, numerous and large companies are developing AI camera systems to carry out targeted health monitoring and to calculate a rough forecast for marketing pigs to the slaughterhouse. However, no current system is able to identify each individual pig in the pen for monitoring and sorting purposes. Pigxcel-ID will support pig farmers to work even more proactively to avoid animal suffering or disease, which means that animal welfare and pork quality will increase. Pigxcel-ID will eliminate the need for the dangerous and time-consuming work of manual weight scaling. Our portal will inform the workers which individual pigs need help to grow as expected. Pigxcel-ID will provide the farmer with a very accurate pig weight, which deviates no more than 2.5kg from the actual weight. Currently, many farmers estimate the weight through experience and a trained eye, achieving an accuracy of +/- 5 to 7kg. Marketing slaughter pigs at the right time and weight increases the price per kg for the pig and optimizes the revenue.

Animal welfare is taking centre stage globally and the European Union will update and tighten its requirements by 2027. Pigxcel-ID helps farmers and their workers to get a better overview of which pigs they should focus on. They can track the daily growth of individual pigs via the computer screen. In the long run, farmers could set up service centres together so that workers receive a list of pigs that need an extra helping hand when they arrive on site. As Pigxcel-ID identifies pigs individually, it simplifies the treatment of the pigs. The installed camera that monitors and calculates the weight of each individual pig can be replaced by a mobile device that marks individual pigs through AI and augmented reality either on the device's screen or through a colour marking device installed in each barn. Individual treatment and sorting become much easier. In fact, no existing system can yet support the farm worker in this. This is a groundbreaking innovation which reduces the stress and work effort of sorting.