Lallemand technical meeting focus on probiotics for pigs

Around 80 people, from all over Europe, Brazil and Asia gathered in Herning, in the Center of the Jutland region, between 18 and 19 June. This event was also the opportunity to meet with local pig producers and see Levucell SB fed sows and piglets as well as visit Lallemand’s Danish yeast production plant.

The objectives of this 5th international meeting dedicated to Saccharomyces cerevisiae ssp. boulardii (Levucell SB), one of the most documented probiotics, were clearly laid out by Matthieu Baulez, global category manager – Monogastric Feed Additives for Lallemand: “Today, the probiotic concept in animal nutrition is increasingly accepted, the science is there, and we can say that Levucell SB is very well documented, for both its modes of action and zootechnical benefits. The goal of today’s meeting is to go from the science to practical, real life experience, in order to address real production issues, exchange ideas and experiences, but also explore new paths and open new windows in sows and piglets nutrition.”

The meeting featured renowned speakers from various and complementary backgrounds (academics, industry, vet, and pig farmer), for example: Dr Isabelle Oswald from INRA (France), Torben Jensen from Vestjyllands Andel (Denmark), Pierre Lebreton from Tecnor-Sofac (France).

The talks moved forward from sow to piglet performance and health challenges, addressing topics such as: sow feed efficiency, piglet vitality at birth and weaning performance, immunity & vaccination efficacy when facing a mycotoxin challenge, feed demedication and pathogen control, etc. The last word was left to a local pig farmer who shared his own Levucell SB experience. His testimonial illustrated well the fact that, in the ever challenging world of pig production, this live yeast can be a valuable tool to help reduce the usage of medicines, while optimising production performances.