Source: UNIV OF MINNESOTA submitted to
INTEGRATING HYBRID RYE AS A WINTER ANNUAL CROP INTO ORGANIC PIG PRODUCTION.
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1026668
Grant No.
2021-51300-34894
Cumulative Award Amt.
$1,433,820.00
Proposal No.
2021-02916
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Sep 1, 2021
Project End Date
Aug 31, 2025
Grant Year
2021
Program Code
[113.A]- Organic Agriculture Research & Extension Initiative
Project Director
Li, Y.
Recipient Organization
UNIV OF MINNESOTA
(N/A)
ST PAUL,MN 55108
Performing Department
CFANS West Central ROC Morris
Non Technical Summary
Organic agriculture is a fast-growing segment in the U.S., with a 30% increase in sales between 2016 and 2019, reaching an all-time high of $9.9 billion (USDA 2019). The number of organic pigs sold increased by 46% during this same period, demonstrating an increased demand for organic pork. Many farmers are interested in raising organic pigs. Pigs rely on high energy and high protein diets to achieve their genetic potential. Traditional feed ingredients that contain high energy and protein for pigs are corn and soybean meal. The price of organic corn and soybean meal has fluctuated 2 to 3 times that of conventional corn and soybean meal over the last five years. Since feed cost can contribute 65 to75% of the total cost of producing an organic pig, feed cost has a significant impact on profitability of organic pig farming. In addition,organic bedding, which is required for organic pig production, is rather costly due to the limited supply of organic straw in the U.S. One strategy to reduce feed and bedding cost is to integrate small grain crops into organic pig production systems. Diverse crop rotations and cover crops are essential strategies to manage soil health and control weeds in organic production. New hybrid varieties of cereal rye have become a more viable crop option for grain production in the Upper Midwest. Integrating hybrid rye into organic pig production will provide feed and bedding for pigs, while potentially reducing negative environmental impacts. In this project we will evaluate how hybrid rye, as a winter annual crop, influences the environmental impacts and economic viability of organic pig production.The goal of this project is to develop systematic strategies for reducing feed and bedding costs and facilitate organic farmers to adopt these strategies to improve production efficiency, reduce environmental impact, and sustain organic pig production in the Upper Midwest. Integrating hybrid rye as a winter annual crop into an organic pig/crop production system can potentially reduce cost of pig feed and bedding while simultaneously improving pork quality and reducing environmental impacts of organic pig production. We will achieve our goal by: 1) developing manure management strategies for optimizing productivity of winter hybrid rye, 2) Evaluating nutritional value of hybrid rye fed to pigs and determine its effects on meat quality, and manure characteristics of organic pigs, 3) Optimizing organic small grain and pig production systems that provide affordable feed and bedding to organic pigs while reducing environmental impacts, 4) Examining economic and environmental impacts of integrating hybrid rye into organic pig production systems, and 5) Facilitating organic farmers to adopt project outcomes by organizing field-days, workshops and seminars, and publishing short videos, fact sheets, extension articles and peer-reviewed scientific papers. Plot and pig trials will be conducted using certified organic land and facilities on the research farm of the University of Minnesota's West Central Research and Outreach Center. Our ultimate goal is to facilitate a sustainable organic pork production system in the Upper Midwest region of the U.S. and beyond.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
0%
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
30735101060100%
Knowledge Area
307 - Animal Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
3510 - Swine, live animal;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems);
Goals / Objectives
The overarching goals of this project are to: 1) develop systematic strategies for reducing feed and bedding costs in organic pig production and 2) facilitate farmers' adoption of the strategies to improve production efficiency, reduce environmental impact, and sustain organic pig production in the Upper Midwest region. Integrating hybrid rye as a winter-annual crop into an organic pig/crop production system can potentially reduce the cost of pig feed and bedding while simultaneously improving pork quality and reducing environmental impacts of organic pork production.Specific ObjectivesDevelop manure management strategies for optimizing productivity of winter hybrid rye for organic feed and bedding productionEvaluate nutritional value of hybrid rye fed to pigs and determine its effects on meat quality and manure characteristics of organic pigsEvaluate regional production methods for organic feed and bedding, and develop alternative organic crop and pig production scenarios that incorporate small grains in organic crop rotations to provide a reliable, affordable supply of organic feed and bedding.Establish economic, soil, and life cycle assessment (LCA) models to examine the financial, soil, and environmental impacts of integrating winter hybrid rye into organic pig production, and alternative organic crop and pig production scenarios developed in Objective 3.Facilitate organic farmers to adopt project outcomes by organizing field-days, workshops and seminars, and publishing short videos, fact sheets, extension articles, and peer-reviewed manuscripts.
Project Methods
For Objective 1: Organic hybrid rye production and manure management strategiesTo evaluate optimal nitrogen rates and sources for organically-produced hybrid rye, the experimental design for the small-plot field trials will include three different manure sources and four application rates (3 × 4 factorial) set up in randomized complete blocks with four replicates (blocks). The experiment will be repeated over two growing seasons in different organically managed fields. Manure will include raw and composted solid hog manure from an organic hoop barn production system and liquid manure from a conventional hog finishing production barn. Application rates for each manure source will include 0 N (control) and 90, 135, and 180 kg ha-1 of first-year N. Stand counts and biomass collections will occur in the fall following rye establishment to determine if manure source or rate have an effect on rye establishment. Grain yield, moisture, and quality will be determined at harvest when the center of each plot is harvested and subsampled with a plot combine. In addition to the study area, thirty acres of organic land will be used over two years in parallel to the small plot study to produce the hybrid rye required for the feeding trials.For Objective 2: Replace corn with hybrid rye in pig diets and evaluate effects on growth performance, carcass and meat quality, and manure characteristics of organic pigsPig trials will be conducted using the certified organic swine research facility at the WCROC. All pigs will be managed according to the organic standards set by the National Organic Program (NOP). There will be two dietary treatments imposed onto pigs: control diet vs. treatment diet with hybrid rye replacing 50% of the corn in the control diet. A randomized complete block design will be used. There will be five blocks at 10-week intervals, using 80 sows and 500 pigs for the entire project. Within each block, 100 healthy pigs (9 wk old) will be transferred to two pens in a hoop barn. One hoop barn will house a control group and a treatment group side-by-side. Growth performance data (feed intake, average daily gain, feed efficiency, morbidity and mortality) will collected until pigs reach the market weight.Organic pork produced per acre of land will be calculated based on rye yield (kg/acre) along with nutrient composition of rye and pig performance data (kg of body weight gain).Nitrogen and P concentrations in manure from pigs between control and treatment pens will be compared to verify whether diets with hybrid rye will reduce P excretion and improve the N:P ratio for crop utilization. Fecal samples will be collected from 10 pigs randomly selected in each pen for analyses of Phytate-P, and total N and P concentrations.To evaluate carcass traits and meat quality, 8 gilts from each pen will be harvested for evaluation of carcass and meat quality. Water holding capacity (an indicator of juiciness) will be measured by chill loss, purge loss, and cooking loss. The subjective and objective color of pork chops will be used as one of the indicators for consumer acceptance. The Warner-Bratzler shear will be used to evaluate toughness of pork chops.Consumer taste panelists will be recruited based on age, gender, and experience with eating pork. Panelists will be asked to taste and rate pork samples for intensity of off flavor, juiciness, and toughness on separate 20-point line scales (AMSA 1995).For Objective 3: Evaluate current situations and design alternative cropping and swine production scenariosWe will examine recent research and extension publications, professional group recommendations, and suggestions from agronomy researchers and organic stakeholders for small grain and swine production. The data collected will include all inputs to the production process, including seed, manure, fuel, equipment, irrigation resources, and harvest inputs. The primary output of grain/straw (yield and quality) and swine (meat production) will also be collected along with relevant data economic and environmental impacts.For Objective 4: Soil, LCA, and Economic modelingTwo farm-based models will be examined for their ability to predict carbon changes in organic cropping. The Integrated Farm Management Systems (IFMS; Rotz et al. 2011) and the Comet model (Comet Farm 2020) are both process driven models that use crop management strategies, regional climate factors, and production data to estimate soil carbon and greenhouse gas changes to farmland. While both models have the underlying data to predict changes due to production of specific crops, neither is specific for organic cropping and there will likely need to be some adjustments made to input data to properly simulate some organic cropping/management combinations.LCA Modeling will use attributional LCA methodologies to compare the current organic production systems and identify important factors for environmental impacts and organic standards that influence productivity under the scenarios studied. The primary impacts measured will be the greenhouse gas emissions and fossil energy, and land use, but the team will also begin collecting data, where available, on water quality (eutrophication), and water use (irrigation/extraction) for the scenarios examined. In examining crop rotations, we will evaluate a number of possible functional units (possibly impacts per kg grain equivalent or starch calories or net energy) to understand how the choice of functional units affects findings based on the multiple outputs of the organic system.Economic modeling component of this project will center on three tasks, 1) developing spreadsheet templates that are appropriate for rye production scenarios, 2) collecting external data needed to model the scenarios, and 3) running the models and examining how the methods identified in those scenarios impact economic returns for the systems being examined.The first step is consulting with the project team and reviewing the relevant modeling scenarios to identify practices and constraints on the systems that impact financial modeling decisions. This information will be used to construct a spreadsheet model looking at the economics of including a small grain such as rye in a typical Minnesota crop operation. The enterprise budget models for rye and other crops will be detailed analyses to demonstrate differences among production methods being studied, including crop rotation suitable for an organic farm with or without rye.For operating crop budget models, we will use input and output data generated from farm business summaries and extension recommendations to develop specific crop enterprise budgets for rye as well as the rotational crops being studied. Additional crop cost and return summaries from FINBIN and other farm business models will be used where needed as background data (FINBIN, 2019). Machinery ownership and operating costs will be based on extension reports based on engineering methods, and on custom rate surveys. Crop enterprise budget models organize yield, price, and cost information to compare profitability to suggest which crops and practices producers should adopt and likely will adopt over time.For Objective 5: Facilitate organic farmers to adopt project outcomesFacilitating organic farmers to adopt project outcomes is a major focus of the project. Throughout the project period, we will disseminate outcomes of the project to stakeholders using a variety of methods, including: field days, workshops, seminars, presentations at conferences, and publications via extension websites, social media, newspapers, popular magazines, peer-reviewed scientific journals, and publicly available databases.

Progress 09/01/23 to 08/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience:The main audience for this project is organic farmers and their stakeholders, including organic certifiers, organic product marketers, as well as researchers, agricultural professionals, and extension specialists. Outcomes of the project have been disseminated to the audience through field days, presentations at farmer meetings and conferences, and publications in proceedings, magazines, newsletters, websites, and other social media. Changes/Problems:This project has been approved for one year no-cost extension due to the delay in organic pig feeding trials. Due to the delay in data collection from the swine trials, data needed for the LCA and economic modeling were not available during the past reporting period. Consequently, work to achieve Objectives 3 and 4 has been delayed. However, the delays will not impact on us completing the project. We will complete all the remaining work as proposed in the proposal over the final reporting period. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project provided educational and training opportunities for graduate students. Two graduate students continued to collect data from the project for their theses and disseminated outcomes of the project to both academic and farmer communities. Through the project, the graduate students were trained to present scientific information to large audiences of different stakeholders (farmers, industry collaborators, extension specialists, and scientists). Additionally, the students created an extension video to demonstrate tips for successful organic pig farming. The project also provided professional development for the team to attend regional and national conferences to interact with organic farmers and their stakeholders and disseminate outcomes of the project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been disseminated to organic farmers, organic certifiers, industry partners, agricultural professionals, extension educators, researchers, and legislators through presentations, demonstrations, and discussion at organic conferences (MN Organic Conference and Marbleseed Conference), academic conferences (Midwestern ASAS and National ASAS), field days (Organic Swine Field Day and Organic Crops Day), workshop of the Forever Green Initiative, University of Minnesota Extension/Outreach events (CFANS Research Symposium and Animal Science Showcase), as well as through publications in newspapers, newsletters, the university extension website, and other social media. Post event-evaluation was conducted which demonstrated that the outreach events were well received by organic farmers and their stakeholders. Participants were excited about outcomes of the project (e.g. organic hybrid rye can successfully replace 50% of corn in organic pig diet without negative impact) and indicated that they would share the information with others. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The next reporting period will be the final period, and we will focus on publication of the project results and compile the final report. Objectives 1 and 2: We will complete statistical analysis of the data and submit/publish three papers to peer-reviewed journals. We also plan to present one or two abstracts at scientific conferences. Objective 3 and 4: Results from the updated model with the full organic swine production data set of the project will be added to the existing LCA model to produce the final project results. The economic model will also be revised with the complete organic swine and cropping system data. The soil, carbon, and economic models will be merged to develop recommendations for organic swine producers to enhance environmental and economic benefits of organic swine production. We will submit two manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed journals. Objective 5: We will continue to publish factsheets and extension articles and disseminate outcomes of the project at farmer meetings and extension events.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: We have completed all data collection for this objective, including data from the small-plot field trial and organic rye production on 17 acres over two years. Lab analysis of all samples have been completed, including soil and manure samples for N, P, K, pH, and organic matter, and rye grain samples for moisture content, test weight, and nutrition (protein) content. Currently, we are in the process of conducting statistical analysis of the data and preparing for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Objective 2: Over the past reporting period, we completed all on-farm data collection by completing three replicates of the pig feeding trial. As in the previous two replicates, each replicate involved 100 pigs that were born to 16 sows in a deep bedded farrowing barn. Pigs were managed organically from prenatal (third trimester) to market weight (270 lb) according to the organic standards set by the National Organic Program (NOP). From 10 weeks old until market weight, pigs were fed control (organic corn soybean meal-based) or treatment (replacing 50% corn in the control diet with organic hybrid rye) diets. Control pens were bedded with organic wheat straw and treatment pens were bedded with organic hybrid rye straw. Organic hybrid rye grain harvested in 2023, and straw produced in both 2022 and 2023 were used for the three replicates of the feeding trial. Data collection was same as in the first two replicates, including growth performance (average daily gain, average daily feed intake, and gain to feed ratio) of pigs, samples of feed, bedding, manure packs, and feces for lab analysis, carcass traits (backfat thickness, loin area, and dressing percentage) and pork quality indicators (pH, shear force, water holding capacity, marbling score, and color). Feed samples were analyzed for proximates, fiber, and amino acid profiles for evaluation of nutritional value of diets. Bedding and manure samples were analyzed for moisture content, total N, organic N, P, and K for evaluation of fertilizer value. Additionally, feed and fecal samples were analyzed for total phosphorus and phytic acid to evaluate whether diets with hybrid rye may help pigs digest phosphorus. Currently, all data are subjected to statistical analysis and prepared for publications in peer-reviewed journals. Objectives 3 and 4: Cropping and soil simulations were conducted with different cropping combinations and rotations using the COMET model. Additional rotations and those already under consideration have been evaluated for their ability to build soil, form rotations acceptable to organic producers, and produce the needed rye crop. Crop and soil data were compared with existing literature on crop production. Life cycle assessment (LCA) modeling work related to swine production has been on hold due to the delay in data collection from organic swine production for the project. The best practice for LCA modeling is to do all analysis using the latest data and data in the literature from around the same period.Once the data analysis from Objective 2 is completed, we will update the COMET model with the complete organic swine production data set and add to the existing LCA model. Likewise, the economic modeling will be updated with the complete organic swine production data. Objective 5: We organized an Organic Swine and Hybrid Rye Field Day at the research site (WCROC, Morris, MN) on May 30, 2024, to showcase the project. The field day consisted of seminars and visiting organic swine facilities and the organic hybrid rye field. About 40 participants, including members of the project stakeholder advisory committee, organic livestock farmers, organic crop farmers, agricultural professionals, extension specialists, and researchers attended the field day. The seminar of the field day was livestreamed with about 500 plays. The research team and graduate students reported results of the project, and demonstrated how the project can help organic farmers improve production efficiency and profitability. A short video that was created by the research team that demonstrates tips for successfully raising organic pigs was shared with the audience. In addition to the field day, we showcased the project at the 2024 FarmFest Minnesota which was held from August 6th to 8th in Redwood Falls, MN. About 700 farmers, Ag professionals, extension specialists, and legislators across the state visited our booth over the three days. Additionally, we offered seminars and presentations at different conferences, meetings, and farmer events. We were invited to present a seminar (titled: Growing Hybrid Rye for Organic Pork Success) at the 2024 Minnesota Organic Conference to share results of the project and to discuss potential applications of the project outcomes to organic farms in the Midwest. About 30 people, including farmers and ag professionals, were in the audience. Furthermore, our graduate students presented two posters (1. Impact of Hybrid Rye on Pork Quality from Pigs Raised Organically; 2. Financial Viability of Growing Hybrid Rye to Feed and Bed Organic Pigs) at the 2024 Marbleseed Conference, the largest organic farming conference in the Midwest. One of the posters won third place in the graduate student competition at the Marbleseed Conference. We continued to deliver outcomes of the project to stakeholders, researchers, ag professionals and industry collaborators (e.g. Hormel Foods). For instance, results of the small-plot trial over two years were shared at a local organic field day (the Steele County (MN) Organic Crops Day) on March 19, 2024 with 25 participants, including organic farmers, extension specialists, and ag professionals. Five oral and poster presentations were given at the UMN's extension and outreach events organized by the Forever Green Initiative group (a sustainable agricultural program sponsored by MN state legislature), the college (CFANS), and the department of Animal Science at UMN (see the list of products). Four factsheets/handouts were created and disseminated to farmers, stakeholders and agricultural professionals at these events. One short video on managing organic pigs was published on social media (YouTube). Additionally, two extension articles were published in The Land Magazine. Two abstracts were published at the Midwestern and National Annual Meetings of American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) in 2024 to disseminate outcomes of the project to broader audiences.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Kavanagh, M., G. Lima, A. Hilbrands, R. Cox, L. Johnston, and Y. Li. 2024. Effects of dietary hybrid rye on quality and consumer acceptability of pork from pigs raised under organic conditions. J. Anim. Sci. Vol. 102 (Suppl. 2) p. 58-59 (abstract). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skae102.068.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Li, Y., M. Kavanagh, G. Lim, A. Hilbrands, W. Lazarus, D. DeWitte, and L. Johnston. 2024. Integrating hybrid rye into organic pig production to reduce feed and bedding costs. 2024 ASAS-CSAS-WSASAS Annual Meeting, PSVII-29 (abstract). July 21-25, 2024. Calgary, AB. Canada. Available at: https://2024asasannual.eventscribe.net/posterAgenda.asp?startdate=7/23/2024&enddate=7/23/2024&pfp=PosterAgenda&mode=
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: DeWitte, D. 2024. Organic pigs and rye: The rest of the story. The Land Magazine. P. 9-11. Available at: https://landmagazine-cnhi.newsmemory.com/
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: DeWitte, D. 2024. U of Ms research has always been about the alternatives. The Land. May 9, 2024. Available at: https://www.thelandonline.com/news/u-of-m-s-research-has-always-been-about-the-alternatives/article_d1af4bbe-0e4d-11ef-a18e-13aa8409607b.html


Progress 09/01/22 to 08/31/23

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project is organic farmers and their stakeholders, including organic certifiers, organic product marketers, as well as researchers, agriculturalprofessionals, and extension specialists. Outcomes of the propject havebeen disseminated to the audience through a field dayat the WCROC, presentationat the MN Organic Conference, and publicaitons in newsletters and on the university extenstion website and other social media. Changes/Problems: A team member, Mr. Curt Reese (Farm Manager), left the university in May 2023. Mr. Reese was responsible for organic winter hybrid rye production during the first two years of the project. By the time of Mr. Reese's departure, there were only three months before the organic hybrid rye being harvested. As a result, Mr. Reese's role was filled by other team members (Drs. Wilson, Tallaksen, and Garcia y Garcia), and the departure of Mr. Reese did not affect us achieving the goals of the project. Due to the significant increase in organic soybean meal (SBM) and organic corn price over the last two years, we are in a deep budget deficit. For instance, we budgeted $9.5/bushel for organic corn and $950/ton for organic SBM in the proposal. However, in 2022 when we conducted the pig feeding trial, the price for organic corn and SBM was $11.5/bushel (21% increase) and $1,690/ton (78% increase), respectively. For the entire feeding trial with 5 replicates, we will need 5,720 bushels of organic corn, and 69.2 tons of organic SBM. The price increase resulted in $62,648 deficit in our budget (including $11,440 deficit for organic corn, and $51,208 deficit for organic SBM). To alleviate the budget deficit pressure, we propose to reduce the replicates of the pig feeding trial from five to four. We have conducted a power test based on our preliminary results of variation in final body weight of pigs from the project. By assuming to detect 5% reduction in final market weight (mean1 = 274 lb vs. mean2= 288 lb; SD = 30), the power test indicates that reducing replicates from five (250 pigs/treatment) to four (200 pigs/treatment) will not compromise the test power (>0.85). So, we would like to request an approval from the USDA OREI program leaders to allow us to drop one replicate of the feeding trial. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project provided educational opportunities for graduate students. Two graduate students (MS) have participated in the project and conducted the pig feeding trial since 2022 fall semester. The data generated from this project will contribute to their M.S. theses. The project also provided professional development for the team to attend organic conferences and interact with organic farmers and their stakeholders. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Preliminary results have been disseminated to organic farmers, organic certifiers, ag. professionals, extension educators, researchers, and legislatures through presentations, demonstrations, and discussion at the MN organic conference, WCROC organic field day, the Forever Green Initiative Research and Discussion Meeting, North American Manure Expo, and University of Minnesota Extension events, as well as through publications in newspapers, newsletters, the university extension website, and other social media. Post event-evaluation was conducted which demonstrated that the outreach events were well received by organic farmers and their stakeholders. Participants indicated that they would share the information with others and were excited about the progress of the project. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1: We will complete soil sampling for the second (final) year of the small-plot field experiment. We will also get all soil and rye grain samples analyzed for P, N, K, pH, and organic matter to evaluate nutrient cycling in the soil-plant systems as well as the impact of manure application on hybrid rye yield. We will conduct statistical analysis of the data and plan to publish a paper in a peer-reviewed journal. Additionally, we plan to present results at one or two farmer meetings. Objective 2: We will complete the pig feeding trial by conducting two additional replicates. We will farrow 32 sows to produce 200 organic pigs for the study. We will collect data on growth performance of pigs, N and P in pig manure, and nutrients in feed, carcass traits, and pork quality from pigs fed treatment diets (replacing 50% corn in control diets) vs. pigs fed control diets (corn soybean meal-based diets). We will conduct statistical analysis of the data from all replicates and present results at a regional organic conference (Annual Marbleseeds Conference, formerly known as MOSES), the Midwest Animal Science Annual meeting, and one or two farmer meetings. We plan to submit two manuscripts to peer-journals for publication. Objective 3 and 4: Data collected from the final year of swine work will be added to the existing LCA model.Cropping/soil simulations will be conducted for the rotations under development.Both the organic swine and crop/soil models will be compared with existing literature on swine and crop production. The economic modeling will be revised with the final year's crop and swine data. The soil, carbon, and economic models will be merged to develop recommendations for organic swine producers to enhance environmental and economic benefits of organic swine productions. We plan to generate two manuscripts for publication in peer-reviewed journals. Objective 5: We plan to organize a workshop/seminar at the MN Organic Conference and present a poster at the Marbleseeds Annual Conference. Additionally, we plan to submit three to four abstracts to the Midwest Animal Science Annual Meeting, Agronomy, Crop, and Soil Science Annual Meeting, and North Central Weed Science Society Annual Meeting. Additionally, we will generate one to two fact sheets, two short videos, and two extension articles.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: We completed the second year of the small-plot field experiment evaluating manure management strategies for organic hybrid rye production. The second-year plot trial mirrored the first-year trial, in term of manure source (raw solid, composted solid, and liquid), manure application rate (0 as control, 60, 120, 180, and 240 lb/acres), replicates (n = 4), and data collection (soil N, P, K, pH, and organic matter). Stand count was conducted in November 2022 and May 2023. Rye grain was harvested in July 2023 and sampled for analysis of moisture content, test weight, and grain quality. In parallel to the small-plot study, organic hybrid rye was grown on 17 acres of an adjacent, organically certified land for the feeding trial to achieve Objective 2. Objective 2: We completed two replicates of the pig feeding trial. Within each replicate, 100 pigs that were born to 16 sows in a deep bedded farrowing barn were selected for the trial. Pigs were managed organically from prenatal (third trimester) to market weight (270 lb) according to the organic standards set by the National Organic Program (NOP). From 10 weeks old until market weight, pigs were fed control (organic corn soybean meal-based) or treatment (replacing 50% corn in the control diet with organic hybrid rye) diets. Control pens were bedded with organic wheat straw and treatment pens were bedded with organic hybrid rye straw. Organic hybrid rye grain and straw produced in 2022 was used for the first two replicates of the feeding trial. In both replicates, growth performance (average daily gain, average daily feed intake, and gain to feed ratio) of pigs was monitored. The bedding, manure pad, and fecal samples were collected for analysis of N and P concentration. At the end of the feeding trial, carcass traits (backfat thickness, loin area, and dressing percentage) and pork quality indicators (pH, shear force, water holding capacity, and color) were measured. Consumer acceptance of the pork was evaluated by a taste panel. Objective 3: During the past year, the project team has been collecting cropping and livestock data for rye and rye-based swine diets for use in LCA modeling. In addition, new swine and rye production scenarios are being developed to add to the three crop rotations initially identified and the baseline organic swine diet. The added rotations include a broader array of cover crops and focus on enhanced environmental benefits. Specific cover crops that have been identified include forage radish, camelina, and oats. These are to be tested as both standalone cover crops and as interseeded crops. Objective 4: For the soil modeling work, we have decided that the COMET farm model is the best option to examine the complex rotations and cover-crops being used in the organic crop production system. Compared to other models, COMET model allows the use of multiple crops in a single season and has a good number of choices in its cropping library. The model examines both soil carbon changes and nitrogen emissions, two important sources of carbon emissions/capture. A baseline corn-soybean rotation has been entered into the COMET model as part of the testing phase. An initial assessment of the rye-alfalfa- corn rotation has been conducted and indicates around 1.8 tons of carbon are captured per year with this rotation. Additionally, preliminary economic analysis was conducted using the data collected in 2022. The economic viability of growing winter hybrid rye for organic pigs as feed and bedding was discussed with organic farmers and their stakeholders at the field day on June 22, 2023 (see Objective 5 below). Objective 5: During the last reporting period, we organized a field day at the research site (WCROC, Morris, MN) on June 22, 2023 to showcase the project. The field day consisted of seminars, organic swine facility tours, and organic hybrid rye field walk. About 50 participants, including members of the project stakeholder advisory committee, organic livestock farmers, organic crop farmers, agricultural professionals, extension specialists, and researchers attended the field day. We shared outcomes of the project and demonstrated management strategies for growing winter hybrid rye organically, feeding hybrid rye to organic pigs, monitoring organic pigs using precision livestock farming technology (LeeO system), and enhancing economic viability of growing winter hybrid rye for organic pigs as feed and bedding. In addition to the field day, we demonstrated the LeeO system at the 2023 FarmFest Minnesota which was held between August 1st and 3rd in Redwood Falls, MN. About 600 farmers, Ag professionals, extension specialists, and legislatures across the state visited our booth over the three days. Additionally, we offered seminars and presentations at different conferences, meetings, and farmer events. For instance, we organized a seminar (titled: A Pair with Potential: Hybrid Rye + Swine) at the 2023 Minnesota Organic Conference to share our findings from the project and discussed potential applications of the project outcome to organic farms in the Midwest. We also gave a seminar/webinar to stakeholders, researchers, and legislatures at the Forever Green Initiative (a sustainable agricultural program sponsored by MN state legislature) Research Updates and Discussion Meetings. Outcomes of the plot trial were shared at 2023 North American Manure Expo on August 9th in Arlington, WI. Three seminars regarding growing organic hybrid rye for pigs were offered at the University of Minnesota Extension events (UMN Extension Small Grains Updates) between January and March of 2023 in three locations (Morris, LeCenter, and Slayton) in Minnesota to reach farmers across the state. Furthermore, two factsheets and one short video were published to disseminate outcomes of the project to broader audiences. Progress of the project has been updated through publications in newsletters, The Land magazine, and on the university extension website and other social media.

Publications

  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Yuzhi Li. 2023. Organic Swine Research: 2023. Article on WCROC website. May 1st, 2023. https://wcroc.cfans.umn.edu/about-us/wcroc-news/organic-swine-research.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Diane DeWitte. 2023. Swine & U: UMN research on organic hybrid rye and organic pigs. Article on swineweb.com. May 15, 2023. https://swineweb.com/swine-u-umn-research-on-organic-hybrid-rye-and-organic-pigs-by-diane-dewitte-umn-extension-swine-educator/
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Melissa Wilson, Yuzhi Li, and Curt Reese. 2023 (Factsheet). Evaluating different types of swine manure for hybrid rye production. Article in Stevens County Times: Features from the Farm. March 15, 2023; (This article has been published in several places to reach out to different audiences, including Crop News Post: Manure Update. March 28, 2023; UMN Extension, March 2023. https://blog-crop-news.extension.umn.edu/2023/03/manure-research-update-evaluating.html)
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Lee Johnston, Yuzhi Li, Gabriella Lima, and Megan Kavanagh. 2023 (Factsheet). WCROC Pig ID in the Cloud. Article in Stevens County Times. January 24, 2023.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Megan Kavanagh, Gabriella Lima, Yuzhi Li, Lee J. Johnston. 2023. The LeeO system  Pig production data at your fingertips. Article in Stevens County Times: Features from the Farm. March 21, 2023.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Diane DeWitte. 2023. Organic Rye is finding a home with hogs. The Land. Swine & U. April 14, 2023. https://z.umn.edu/SwineUApril2023


Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/22

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project is organic farmers, their stakeholders, researchers, and agricultural professionals. General information about the project has been disseminated to the audiencethrough publications in newslettersand on the university extension websiteand other social media. Changes/Problems: The research team decided to move the first year's workshop and field day to the next year when the plot field data are analyzed and summarized. Dr. Jared Goplen, an extension educator in crop production, has left the University of Minnesota. We have replaced Dr. Goplen with Dr. Axel Garcia y Garcia, an associate professor of sustainable cropping systems and extension specialist at the Southwest Research and Outreach Center,University of Minnesota. Dr. Garcia y Garcia will take all the responsibilities assigned to Goplen in the proposal. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project provided educational opportunities for graduate students. Two graduate students who are supported by this project have been recruited. They will start their M.S. programs in 2022 fall semester. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?No results are available at this point. In June of 2022, a co-PD (Dr. Joel Tallaksen) attended a USDA workshop in Ft. Collins, CO that examined how the USDA could increase their collaborations/support in US based ag LCA efforts. Among other goals, they hope to increase the amount of data from projects like this rye/swine project being added to the USDA National Agriculture Libraries LCA data collection. Dr. Tallaksen's presentation to the group included a discussion of this project and information that can be added to the USDA-NAL database. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1: we will start and complete the second (final) year of the small-plot field experiment. We'll also grow a second field of bulk hybrid rye for the organic pig feeding trials. We plan to hold one field day regarding hybrid rye production and will present results at one to two grower meetings. Objective 2: We will complete two pig feeding trials (there will be 5 trials in total for the project). We will collect on-farm data (growth performance, mortality and morbidity of pigs, N and P in pig manure, nutrients, and anti-nutrient factors in feed),carcass and pork quality data (carcass weight and length, loin area, backfat thickness, pork pH, color, water holding capacity, and shear force value), and will evaluate consumers' preference of pork from pigs fed hybrid rye. The results will be presented at a workshop/field day and one to two farmer meetings. Objective 3 and 4: Data collection from the final work on the first cropping season will be added to the LCA model.The first year of the swine data will be added to the model as well.Initial soil modeling will be started with the soil carbon emissions and N2O emissions compared with IPCC equations. These models and data will be evaluated by the project team for their feedback and discussion on improvements to increase accuracy. Objective 5: A workshop/field day will be organized. A seminar or a poster will be presented at the MOSES annual conference. Preliminary results will be presented at one to two farmer meetings. Additionally, two fact sheets (manure management for organic hybrid rye, and record keeping for organic pig production), two short videos (growing winter organic hybrid rye, and manure application for organic hybrid rye), and two extension articles will be produced.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1: We completed one year of the small-plot field experiment evaluating manure management strategies for organic hybrid rye production. Three sources of swine manure (raw solid, composted solid, and liquid), each at five application rates (0 as control, 60, 120, 180, and 240 lb N/acre) were tested in four replicates on organically certified land. Manure samples of each source were collected and analyzed for total N, P, K, organic N, C:N ratio. Manure was applied September 2021 and the field was planted shortly after. Soil samples were collected before manure application and throughout the growing season for analysis of nitrate/ammonium, phosphorus, potassium, pH, and organic matter. Stand count was conducted in November 2021 and May 2022. Rye grain was harvested in July 2022 and sampled for analysis of moisture content, test weight, and grain quality. In parallel to the small-plot study, organic hybrid rye was grown on 20 acres of an adjacent, organically certified land. Objective 2: The first group of organic pigs were born to 16 sows in July 2022. Pigs were weaned at 6 weeks of ageand have been managed according to the organic standards set by the National Organic Program (NOP). Currently, pigs are 7 weeks old and housed in a deep-bedded nursery barn. The first feeding trial will start in September 2022 when pigs are 11 weeks old. Organic hybrid rye grain and straw produced forObjective 1 will be used for the feeding trial. Objective 3: We examined crop rotations that might fit with winter rye production in the Upper Midwest region.Potential rotations are being modeled using LCA software to examine greenhouse gas and fossil fuel impacts as part of an organic farm operation. Three rotations (listed below) were developed based on some basic practices fororganic systems: 1) containing at least one rotation of perennial crop; 2) maintaining continuous cover on the land whenever possible. Rotation 1: Corn silage & Rye establishment > Rye & Alfalfa establishment> Alfalfa (2 years) > Corn grain & fall cover > Soy + fall cover. Ration 2: Corn Silage & Rye establishment> Rye & Soy (relay) + fall cover > Corn Grain. Rotation 3: Corn Silage + Alfalfa Establishment > Alfalfa (2 years)> Corn Silage + Rye establishment. Objective 4: The LCA efforts have focused on tracking the activities of organic hybrid rye production for Objective 1. More specific LCA work will begin as yield data and harvest/storage operations are finished. Additionally, we have begun to explore soil models that can predict N2O and soil carbon variations due to cropping system changes.A likely candidate model for examining the soil variables is the COMET model, which can model multi-crop rotations with complex soil models using a web-based user interface. Objective 5: Progress of the project has been communicated with the advisory committee. Additionally, general information about the project has been disseminated through publications in newsletters andon the university extension website and other social media.

Publications

  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Yuzhi Li. 2021. Organic pigs and hybrid rye. WCROC News. Dec. 2021. Available at: https://wcroc.cfans.umn.edu/about-us/wcroc-news/organic-pigs-hybrid-rye
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Organic pigs and hybrid rye. swineweb.com. Jan. 5th, 2022. Available at: https://www.swineweb.com/organic-pigs-and-hybrid-rye
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2022 Citation: Organic pigs and hybrid rye. Stevens County Times. Features from the Farm. Jan. 25, 2022.
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Diane DeWitte. 2021. University of Minnesota Swine Extension Program News Release. UMN Swine Extension Facebook, Sept 20, 2021.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: University of Minnesota Team Wins USDA Grant. AnSci Connection, UMN Dept of Animal Science Newsletter, Sept. 2021.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: U of MN team wins USDA grant for organic swine. WCROC News, Nov. 8, 2021. Available at: https://wcroc.cfans.umn.edu/news/usda-swine-grant
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2021 Citation: Organic swine research set to continue at WCROC. UMN Swine Extension, Nov. 15, 2021.