Babcock Nutrition Guide

In the highly specialized field of swine nutrition, it is important to match the right nutrition program to your herd's genetic potential. As feed cost is the single greatest production expense, it is more important than ever to develop and maintain a cost efficient feeding program. To do this, we highly recommend using the National Research Council's Nutrient Requirements of Swine.

About Nutrient Requirements of Swine:

(from the National Academy Press web site)

The tenth edition of this essential reference presents new knowledge about the nutritional needs of swine that consider such factors as growth rate, carcass leanness, gender, health, environment, and repartitioning agents.

New sections are presented on requirements for amino acids and other nutrients. In addition, an original modeling approach to arriving at energy and amino acid needs for given animals is incorporated in this revision. The book comes with a CD-ROM that allows users to create tables of nutrient requirements for swine of a specific body weight and level of productivity. Nutrient Requirements of Swine covers:

Biological concepts that underlie nutrient needs for growth and function. New data on amino acid and energy requirements and the factors that shape them. New findings on lysine and the bioavailability of amino acids. New research results on minerals and vitamins. Nutrient composition of an expanded list of feedstuffs. The role of water in swine physiology, including factors that affect the quality of drinking water. Expanded tables of feed ingredients and their nutrient composition provide bioavailability estimates, fatty acid composition of fats typically used in swine diets, and important information on estimating the amino acid content of crude protein.

• Go to National Academy Press' web site at http://www.nap.edu/catalog/6016.html to purchase, read, or download Nutrient Requirements of Swine.
• Click below to download NRC's nutrition model software:
  NRC Model Software (Downloadable)

Notes:

• We recommend using 341 to 345 grams per day of lean gain as a good starting point.
• We offer this information as a guide only. Many factors effect your herd's nutritional needs, including seasonal influences, building design, air quality, population density, quality of feed ingredients, etc. A qualified nutritionist will be able to use this guide to develop rations to meet your herds specific needs.

Click on the following links for specific information:

• Feeding Guide for Gilts and Sows
• Sow Conditioning Program