Numerical calculations of stratospheric ozone transport.

http://www.archive.org/details/numericalcalcula00ste

Costs, Returns, Production and Financial Efficiency of Niche Pork Production in 2008

In recent years the production of niche pork has been expanding in response to growing demand for products with specific attributes, such as pork from animals produced without antibiotics, using bedded pens and with outdoor access. This growth has occurred, in many situations, from the ground up. Entrepreneurial producers have identified unmet market demands and opportunities for new products. These producers then set out to develop products to satisfy this demand and marketing systems to get these niche products to the consumer

The Real World of Ventilation Troubleshooting: A Swine Case Study

Swine finishing facility ventilation has become relatively complex and is often mismanaged as a system. One of the few ways to truly understand these systems is to spend time systematically going through the many components of the building. To learn to help producers better, a team of university Extension specialists that included agricultural engineers and animal scientists spent an extended period carefully documenting conditions in a deep-pit swine finishing building with two 1,000-head rooms. Exhaust fans in the pit and walls operated at various stages throughout the year as a negative-pressure ventilation system. A computerized controller activated exhaust fans, a ventilation curtain actuator, and heaters. Gravity baffled ceiling inlets were evenly spaced in the building to provide good air distribution during cold and mild weather conditions. Following the review of current conditions and operating parameters, performance deficiencies were identified and recommendations were given regarding controller settings, inlet settings, and curtain management. The overall operating characteristics of the ventilation system and air quality in the animal space were documented ventilation and related management changes were discussed with the owner/operator

Efficiency of Niche Pork Production in 2007

Information is provided on pig production efficiency for niche pork production. Information from 27 niche pork producers is included in the analysis. The average female breeding herd size was 81 females. The average feed efficiency was 4.42 pounds of feed per pound of production, although the average for the top 9 herds was 3.78 and the average for the bottom 9 herds was 5.24. Average labor use was 1.01 hours per hundred pounds of pork produced. About one of every four pigs born alive died before weaning. Another 13 percent died from weaning to market. Breeding herd death loss was in the 4 to 12 percent range. The information summarized here shows striking differences in many areas between the top 9 and bottom 9 producers. The areas with the largest differences are places with the most potential to help producers improve. Educational programming that targets these areas is being developed to help these producers make changes to improve their operations, which in turn will improve the position of this sector of the industry

Returns and Costs of Niche Pork Production in 2008

Information is provided on the return, cost and financial efficiency for niche pork production. Information from 18 niche pork producers is included in the analysis. Return levels showed that the average return to capital, unpaid labor and management return to capital, unpaid labor and management for the top 6 producers was $5.23 per hundred pounds of pork produced, while this average was -$10.68 for the bottom 6 producers and -$3.80 for all 18 producers. The average margin over all costs on a per head sold basis showed a large loss ($-52.89 for the average producer). The average return per hour of labor after all costs was -$12.36 for all 18 producers, but$9.23 per hour for the top 6 producers and -$9.82 for the bottom 6 producers. The average total cost per hundred pounds of pork produced for all producers was$81.40, while the top third (6) had average total costs that were $32.43 less than the bottom 6 producers ($66.52 vs $98.75). Production costs increased by about 21 percent over the 2007 level. The main contributor to cost differences between the top third and bottom third producers was operating costs, which included feed and other operating expenses and labor costs. These costs represented the majority of the total cost difference and were about equally split between the two; operating costs (feed and other) and labor costs. The information summarized here shows striking differences in many areas between the top 6 and bottom 6 producers. The areas with the largest differences are places with the most potential to help producers improve. Educational programming that targets these areas is being developed to help these producers make changes to improve their operations, which in turn will improve the position of this sector of the industry

Efficiency of Niche Pork Production in 2008

Information is provided on pig production efficiency for niche pork production. Information from 18 niche pork producers is included in the analysis. The average female breeding herd size was 61 females. The average feed efficiency was 4.63 pounds of feed per pound of production, although the average for the top 6 herds was 4.20 and the average for the bottom 6 herds was 5.25. Average labor use was 1.02 hours per hundred pounds of pork produced. About one of every five pigs born alive died before weaning. Another 10 percent died from weaning to market. Breeding herd death loss was in the 2.5 to 7 percent range. The information summarized here shows striking differences in many areas between the top 6 and bottom 6 producers. The areas with the largest differences are places with the most potential to help producers improve. Educational programming that targets these areas is being developed to help these producers make changes to improve their operations, which in turn will improve the position of this sector of the industry

Deciphering interplay between Salmonella invasion effectors

Bacterial pathogens have evolved a specialized type III secretion system (T3SS) to translocate virulence effector proteins directly into eukaryotic target cells. Salmonellae deploy effectors that trigger localized actin reorganization to force their own entry into non-phagocytic host cells. Six effectors (SipC, SipA, SopE/2, SopB, SptP) can individually manipulate actin dynamics at the plasma membrane, which acts as a ‘signaling hub’ during Salmonella invasion. The extent of crosstalk between these spatially coincident effectors remains unknown. Here we describe trans and cis binary entry effector interplay (BENEFIT) screens that systematically examine functional associations between effectors following their delivery into the host cell. The results reveal extensive ordered synergistic and antagonistic relationships and their relative potency, and illuminate an unexpectedly sophisticated signaling network evolved through longstanding pathogen–host interaction