Feed is the largest single cost of pork production, with dietary energy being the most costly component. It is estimated that approximately 50% of the total cost of pork production is due to meeting dietary energy requirements.

A variety of measures are available to allow producers to understand current production and to make informed management decisions regarding feed. John Patience, professor at Iowa State University, emphasized at the Banff Pork Seminar that feed conversion, or feed efficiency, can be a useful tool and that optimizing feed efficiency contributes greatly to overall farm success. However, producers need to understand exactly what is being measured and how to interpret this data, otherwise costly mistakes can be made.

Patience explains that the definition of feed efficiency has changed over the years, and producers can express feed efficiency in many different ways, but they need to ask themselves what question they are trying to answer and how they are going to use the information. What information do they need to make a management decision? Producers also need to understand what influences feed conversion and where the numbers come from in order to make appropriate management decisions. Feed efficiency, therefore, must be considered in the context of other performance and financial outcomes.

“We may have to alter our mindset from targeting maximal performance to targeting suboptimal performance, because this is how farm net income can be maximized,” Patience says.

There are many factors that influence feed efficiency, including diet, environment, genetics and health status, which makes it difficult to set benchmarks and compare feed efficiency values from farm to farm.

In his seminar, Patience discussed some of the factors that affect feed efficiency in more detail.

However, Patience notes that “selecting for feed efficiency can be problematic, as it can result in animals with poor feed intake and thus slower growth.” Indeed, the previously mentioned improvement in feed intake was accompanied by a reduction in daily gain (-6%). Feed efficiency, therefore, may be increased to maximize net income without necessarily maximizing growth.

“Even modest improvements in feed efficiency can be highly beneficial to net income,” Patience says, but producers must ensure that the cost of these improvements does not outweigh the potential benefits. It is important to remember that achieving the most economical feed efficiency may not always translate to the best growth performance. Feed efficiency must not be analyzed in isolation, and an understanding of what influences this value is critical for making informed management decisions.