Search
Better Farming OntarioBetter PorkBetter Farming Prairies

Better Farming Ontario Featured Articles

Better Farming Ontario magazine is published 11 times per year. After each edition is published, we share featured articles online.


One packer's response to belly ruptures in pigs

Thursday, May 1, 2014

Conestoga Meat Packers has set up a three-step process to deal with hernias in hogs coming into its packing plant and now severe cases are rare

by DON STONEMAN

Frank Wood, procurement manager at Conestoga Meat Packers, Breslau, hasn't forgotten a particular day in 2008 that resulted in the farmer-owned co-op and third-largest pork packing plant in Ontario taking a tough line against so-called belly ruptures in pigs, a hot issue elsewhere in the industry last year and now.

"We had a very critical customer coming through," Wood related to a pork producer meeting in Kirkton recently. There were two badly ruptured pigs in the plant from different farms. Wood points out the company markets pork based on the premise that smaller-scale family farm production is a kinder system. "We are family farmers and we care about our hogs. I'll never forget hearing this woman say 'what I really see is farmers that don't care,' and that set off alarm bells."

Wood says the issue was taken to members who "voted on and approved" a process for dealing with hogs compromised by hernias ever since. First, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency inspector is called. Then the affected animal is segregated and euthanized. The producer is assessed a handling fee "and there is follow up between my department and the producer," Wood says.

One result, he says, is that severe cases hardly ever happen anymore at the Conestoga plant. Conestoga's rule is that pigs with belly ruptures are allowed through the system if the hernias are "no bigger than a softball." Producers call the plant sometimes to ask whether particular pigs can be shipped. Wood says photos taken with cell phones help in decision-making.  

While there is a new pig code and there are federal laws involving the transport of livestock, plus Health of Animals regulations, Conestoga is also responsible to its customers. "We had seven audits from seven large companies in the last year," Wood says, citing Wendy's, Tim Hortons and Sobeys Inc. among them. "They are paying attention to this kind of stuff."

Dealing with compromised pigs when they arrive at the plant is critical, Wood says. Mostly hogs are suffering from exhaustion. Trucking is the most stressful thing that happens to a pig in its lifetime and problems experienced in the barn will be multiplied.

Wood notes that customer perceptions aren't the only reason that ruptured hogs shouldn't be brought into the plant. There is a danger of fecal contamination of other carcasses on the kill floor if the rupture spills. Segregating the compromised pig is an added cost. And "bellies" are an important and profitable primal cut that greatly reduce the value of a hog if they are damaged.

Conestoga Packers kills 14,000 hogs a week, the output from about 150 family farms that it says are located within a two-hour drive of the plant. BF

Current Issue

June/July 2025

Better Farming Magazine

Farms.com Breaking News

Ontario crops face mixed spring conditions

Tuesday, June 17, 2025

According to the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture Field Crop News, variable spring weather has created mixed crop conditions across the province. Rain, wind, and cool nighttime temperatures have delayed planting, slowed growth, and limited spraying windows for corn, soybeans, and... Read this article online

Health Canada sets rules for drone spraying

Monday, June 16, 2025

Health Canada has approved the use of drones, also called Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), for pesticide application under the Pest Control Products Act (PCPA). Drones are considered aircraft by Transport Canada, but Health Canada treats them differently due to their unique... Read this article online

Canada Grows Hope Abroad

Friday, June 13, 2025

Toronto-based indoor farming company transforms food access in Moldova with first-of-its-kind humanitarian hydroponic project A new Canadian-led indoor farming project is changing lives in Moldova. Built by Just Vertical in partnership with GlobalMedic, the hydroponic farm is the first... Read this article online

BF logo

It's farming. And it's better.

 

a Farms.com Company

Subscriptions

Subscriber inquiries, change of address, or USA and international orders, please email: subscriptions@betterfarming.com or call 888-248-4893 x 281.


Article Ideas & Media Releases

Have a story idea or media release? If you want coverage of an ag issue, trend, or company news, please email us.

Follow us on Social Media

 

Sign up to a Farms.com Newsletter

 

DisclaimerPrivacy Policy2025 ©AgMedia Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Back To Top