The pig farming industry is abuzz with upheaval—“the Seven-Character Mantra” has made a comeback!
【Summary Description】
With the arrival of the Year of the Ox in 2021, beautiful phrases like “turning the tide with the ox” and “the ox’s spirit soaring to the heavens” have become heartfelt aspirations among friends in the livestock industry. However, market conditions for cattle, sheep, pigs, and chickens have plummeted, with hog prices falling again and again—directly breaching the cost threshold. The hard work and sweat invested can now only elicit sighs of despair! Despite the best efforts of various “divine warriors and celestial generals,” ultimately, they’ve been powerless to turn the tide, leaving the livestock industry shrouded in turbulent times.
In 2018, ASFV—a highly pathogenic virus—traveled a long way to China, this beautiful country, attracted by its reputation as having the world’s largest pig population. Ignoring the “visa” barriers, it took deep root in this pristine land and quickly joined forces with local pathogens such as “circovirus,” bacteria, and toxins, forming the “Infamous Conglomerate.” Using Northeast China as its black stronghold, the virus rapidly spread to every corner of the Chinese mainland.
China is the world’s largest country in terms of both pig inventory and pork consumption. ASFV and its secondary and co-infectious diseases have caused a sharp decline in domestic pig production capacity, delivering an unprecedented blow to the pig industry. To counter this, governments at all levels and industry experts have tried everything possible to minimize losses or reverse the damage. After nearly three years of exploration and summarization, industry experts have developed a series of prevention strategies: the “Iron-Link Model,” the “Decentralized Model,” the “Small-Unit Rearing Model,” and others. These strategies have achieved some success, but due to slow progress in vaccine development, using vaccines to combat African swine fever remains a distant prospect. Moreover, with recent low hog prices, many farmers have lost their enthusiasm for raising pigs, leaving them utterly confused about how to proceed. How to keep that spark alive has become the core issue urgently needing resolution for the vast majority of pig farmers. Consequently, “reducing costs and boosting efficiency” has naturally become a hot buzzword in the livestock industry—specifically, the seven-character mantra of “more births, fewer deaths, faster growth” has re-emerged!
“More births” refers to the productivity level of sows;
“Fewer deaths” refers to the survival rate of piglets;
“Faster growth” refers to the overall performance during the entire fattening phase of pigs—the ultimate reflection of economic benefits.
Whether it’s more births, fewer deaths, or faster growth, all these goals undoubtedly depend on animal health as their foundation. If animals are subhealthy or close to illness, the “seven-character mantra” becomes impossible to achieve. Whether it’s Professor Fan Fuhao’s “Redundant Nutrition Theory” or Professor Mu Xiang’s “Qi and Blood Abundance Theory,” both aim to ensure animal health. Only when animals are healthy can their nonspecific immunity be guaranteed, enabling their bodies to effectively fight off disease. Therefore, in today’s context of raging epidemics and depressed market conditions, building an animal health system—from both management and nutritional perspectives—has become the industry’s new guiding principle.
Health is a broad and profound topic, touching upon every aspect of livestock farming. Simply put, management means controlling the environment, aiming to minimize stressors for animals as much as possible; nutrition means enhancing the animal’s immune system and improving production levels. There are no shortcuts in livestock farming—every step requires careful attention!
Looking back at the development of China’s pig farming—from free-range to intensive systems—we’ve experienced countless tears and hardships. But after the outbreak of African swine fever, whether it’s family farms or large-scale breeding groups, everyone seems to be becoming increasingly rational, recognizing that environment and nutrition are the two core pillars of pig production. Focusing on nutrition and reducing stress have become the two most fundamental approaches determining whether the pig farming industry can survive.
In short, market conditions may be uncontrollable, but animal health is controllable; diseases may be unknown, but immunity can be cultivated. “Existence itself is the truth.” Let existing products play their rightful roles and return to their original positions: vaccines for disease prevention, medicines for treatment, and nutrition for increased productivity! Focus on nutrition, and let Xilai Gao walk alongside you every step of the way!
With the arrival of the Year of the Ox in 2021, beautiful phrases like “The Ox Turns the World Around” and “The Ox’s Spirit Soars to the Heavens” have finally become the heartfelt aspirations of friends in the livestock industry. However, market conditions for cattle, sheep, pigs, and chickens have plummeted, with hog prices falling again and again—directly breaching the critical cost threshold. The hard work and sweat invested can now only bring forth sighs of despair! Despite the vigorous efforts of various “divine warriors and celestial generals” to turn the tide, they ultimately found themselves powerless to reverse the situation. The world of animal husbandry has truly become one fraught with turbulent changes and shifting fortunes.
In 2018, ASFV traveled a long way to China—the beautiful country—drawn by its reputation as the world’s largest hog population. Ignoring the pressure of “visas,” it took deep root in this pristine land and soon joined forces with indigenous factions such as “Ringworm,” “Bacteria,” and “Toxins,” forming the “Infamous Conglomerate.” Using Northeast China as its dark stronghold, the group rapidly spread to every corner of the Chinese mainland.
China is the world’s largest country in terms of both live pig inventory and pork consumption. However, ASFV and its associated secondary and co-infectious diseases have led to a sharp decline in domestic pig production capacity, causing an unprecedented impact on the pig industry. To address this crisis, governments at all levels and industry experts are doing everything possible to minimize losses or even reverse them. After nearly three years of exploration and summarization, industry experts have developed a series of prevention strategies, such as the “Iron Fence” model, the “Decentralized Point” model, and the “Small-Unit Rearing” model. These strategies have achieved some positive results. Yet, given the slow progress in vaccine development, using vaccines to combat African swine fever remains a distant prospect. Moreover, with pork prices recently remaining low, many farmers have lost their enthusiasm for raising pigs, leaving them utterly uncertain about how to proceed. How to keep the spark alive has become a core issue that urgently needs to be addressed by the vast majority of pig farmers. “Reducing costs and boosting efficiency” has naturally become a hot buzzword in the livestock industry—specifically, it means... Many births, few deaths, grows quickly. The Seven-Character True Scripture makes a comeback!
Multiple births—refers to the sow’s reproductive performance;
Fewer deaths—refers to the survival rate of piglets.
Fast growth—refers to the overall performance of pigs throughout the entire fattening phase and is also the ultimate reflection of economic benefits.
Whether it’s about having more offspring, reducing mortality, or achieving faster growth, all these goals undoubtedly hinge on the foundation of animal health. If animals are subhealthy or close to being ill, the “seven-character mantra” simply cannot be put into practice. Both Professor Fan Fuhao’s “Redundant Nutrition Theory” and Professor Mu Xiang’s “Qi and Blood Abundance Theory” aim precisely at ensuring animal health. Only when animals are healthy can their nonspecific immunity be reliably maintained, and only then can their bodies effectively fight off diseases. Therefore, in today’s context—marked by raging epidemics and sluggish market conditions—building a robust animal health system has become the industry’s new guiding principle, whether from a management perspective or a nutritional one.
Health is a broad and complex issue that touches on every aspect of livestock farming. Simply put, management means controlling the environment—with the ultimate goal of minimizing animal stressors as much as possible. Nutrition, in turn, aims to boost the animals’ immune systems and enhance their production performance. There are no shortcuts in livestock farming—every step requires careful attention!
Looking back at the development of pig farming in China—from small-scale, free-range operations to intensive, large-scale farming—this journey has been fraught with countless tears and hardships. Yet, since the outbreak of African swine fever, both family farms and large-scale breeding enterprises have, in my personal view, become increasingly rational, beginning to recognize that... Environment and nutrition are the two core pillars of pig production. Focusing on nutrition and reducing stress have become the two most fundamental approaches to ensuring the sustainability of the pig farming industry.
In short, The market is uncontrollable, but health is controllable; the disease is unknown, but immunity can be cultivated. “Existence itself is the ultimate truth.” Let each existing product fulfill its intended purpose and return to its original role: vaccines for disease prevention, medicines for healing, and nutrition for boosting productivity! Focus on Nutrition Xilai Gao—let’s move forward side by side!
