ProPIG - Organic pig health, welfare and environmental impact across Europe

Organic production is perceived by consumers as being superior in animal welfare and sustainability and the demand for organic pork products is slowly increasing. Within the past ten years a variety of husbandry and management systems have been developed across the EU, ranging from farms with pigs outdoors all year round using local breeds to farms with housed pigs having concrete outside runs and using conventional breeds (CorePIG, Rousing et al, 2011). So far, mainly clinical parameters have been used to describe the health situation on organic pig farms, identifying some key problems, such as weaning diarrhoea and piglet mortality. Organic pig production is - amongst others - characterised through a holistic approach based on the EU Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and the IFOAM principles: ‘health, ecology, fairness and care’. This clearly states that health is more than absence of clinical symptoms and, the relation between animals and their environment is identified: ‘Health’ is defined as ‘the wholeness and integrity of living systems. It is not simply the absence of illness, but the maintenance of physical, mental, social and ecological well-being’ (IFOAM; 2006). Concepts of animal welfare include physical and mental welfare as well as the concept of naturalness (Fraser 2003), which is often interpreted as the ability to perform natural behaviour. Verhoog et al (2003) describe three main approaches within organic agriculture’s concept of nature and naturalness: the no-chemicals approach, the agro-ecology approach and the integrity approach. Applying those concepts to organic pig production can highlight potential conflicts: outdoor systems are perceived as the optimal housing system for pigs, as they allow natural behaviour such as rooting. However, this behaviour can cause damage to the grass cover and furthermore the manure fate in outdoor areas needs to be considered. A few studies on outdoor pig production have shown a clear N and P surplus and a high degree of distribution heterogeneity in outdoor areas, increasing the risk of N and P losses (Watson et al. 2003). Robust and competitive organic pig production needs to encompass low environmental impacts and good animal health and welfare. So far few studies have quantified both aspects in different pig husbandry systems. In addition, the theory that improving animal health and welfare reduces environmental impacts through decreased medicine use, improved growth rate and feed conversion efficiency has still to be verified. The aim of the CoreOrganic2 project ProPIG (2011-2014; carried out in eight European countries) is to examine the relationship between health, welfare and environmental impact. On-farm assessment protocols will be carried out on 75 farms in three pig husbandry systems (outdoor, partly outdoor, indoor with concrete outside run). Environmental impact will be assessed using both Life Cycle Assessment and calculations of nutrient balances at farm and outdoor area level. Animal health and welfare will be evaluated from animal based parameters including clinical and selected behavioural parameters. Results will be fed back and used by the farmers to decide farm specific goals and strategies to achieve these goals. As an outcome, all farms will create their individual health, welfare and environmental plan, which will be reviewed after one year to allow continuous development. This will provide the opportunity not only to investigate, but also improve the influence of organic pig farming systems on animal welfare and environmental impact. This fulfils the fourth IFOAM principle of care: ‘Organic Agriculture should be managed in a precautionary and responsible manner to protect the health and well-being of current and future generations and the environment’ (IFOAM, 2006)

Les flux d'azote en élevage de ruminants

L'élevage transforme l'azote des végétaux en produits animaux et en rejette une partie sous forme de déjections, qui peuvent être utilisées comme engrais. Toutefois le développement des productions animales a conduit dans certains territoires à une concentration des apports et rejets d'azote, et une pollution des eaux, du sol et de l'atmosphère. Cette problématique est traitée depuis une vingtaine d'années par les politiques européennes. Que sait-on aujourd'hui de la dynamique des flux d'azote issus des élevages ? Quelles sont les pistes et les échelles pertinentes d'action pour réduire les émissions et leurs impacts sur l'environnement tout en préservant la compétitivité des productions animales ? Ces questions ont motivé de la part des ministères en charge de l'Agriculture et de l'Ecologie, au printemps 2010, une demande d'expertise scientifique collective auprès de l'INRA pour disposer d'un bilan des connaissances sur les différents flux d'azote associés aux activités d'élevage. Nous relatons ici les éléments majeurs concernant l'élevage des ruminants

Accumulation en phosphore et métaux lourds dans les sols d'exploitations d'élevage intensif en Bretagne occidentale

nøspécial (La rade de Brest)National audienc

Prairie et qualité des eaux

International audienc

Chargement animal et pollution nitrique sous prairie

National audienc

Couverts herbacés pérennes et enjeux environnementaux (en particulier eutrophisation) : atouts et limites

National audienceIn addition to their production function, grasslands act on the enviroment in ways such as the protection of the water quality and of the soil quality. How far and under what conditions can these non-productive functions be carried out by perennial grass covers ? The main processes are described that are implied in the nitrogen and the phosphorus cycles, followed by a reminder of the means of limiting the N and the P losses, at the level of the field, of the farm, and of the catchment basin. The land-use pattern (with the proportion of perennial forage covers) is of great importance. The environmental performances of the grasslands are reported for various types of forage systems. It is not easy to weight the different aspects of the water quality that would favour most adequately the effects of the grasslands (areas and management) where the environmental risks are large. It is absolutely necessary to take into account several dimensions (territorial, temporal, congitive) and to allow for the multiplicity of the problems involved.Outre des fonctions de production, les prairies assurent diverses fonctions environnementales dont la protection de la qualité des eaux et des sols. Dans quelle mesure et à quelles conditions ces fonctions non productives sont elles assurées par les couverts herbacés pérennes ? Après la présentation des principaux processus impliqués dans les cycles de l'azote et du phosphore, les moyens de limiter les pertes en N et P sont rappelés, à l'échelle de la parcelle, de l'exploitation et du bassin versant. L'occupation des sols (et la part de couverts fourragers pérennes) est un critère important. Les performances environnementales des prairies sont restituées dans différents types de systèmes fourragers. Il n'est pas aisé de pondérer les différents enjeux de la qualité des eaux pour optimiser les effets des prairies (surfaces et gestion) dans les territoires à enjeux environnementaux élevés. Plusieurs dimensions (territoriale, temporelle, cognitive) et la multiplicité des enjeux sont absolument à prendre en compte

Nitrogen management in french dairy syst ems: evaluation and enhancement of nitro gen efficiency and econo mic performance

National audienceWhile nitrogen (N) management has improved significantly on livestock farms, with positive consequences for nitrate concentrations in surface waters (Manneville et al., 2017), the French dairy farming sector must continue its efforts. At the same time, dairy farmers have to cope with market developments (increased milk demand), price volatility and changing agricultural policies. Therefore, reconciling respect for the environment and economic competitiveness has become one of their main objectives. To support them, the “Inosys-Réseau d’Elevage” farms network associates 2,000 breeders and 240 engineers to analyze the management of the farms and disseminate the knowledge and tools needed to improve the systems. The analysis of these farms’ data aims to identify sustainable production systems and key actions that can be implemented by farmers to improve nitrogen (and phosphorus) management, related to economic performances (full results in Foray et al., 2017)

Dynamique des flux d'azote en prairie pâturée

National audienc

Interactions milieu - pratiques agricoles - qualité des eaux sur des bassins versants élémentaires de Bretagne occidentale

National audienc

Chargement animal et pollution nitrique sous prairie

National audienc