Human Nutrition
The place of fresh pork in the 2021 USDA Thrifty Food Plan:
A quadratic programming optimization of dietary guidance, nutrient density, and cost.
Pork Checkoff Research
Research is at the heart of the National Pork Board’s mission and is funded by your Pork Checkoff dollars. Research is administered in all areas of pork production, processing, and human nutrition to develop a higher quality and more profitable product in the competitive meat protein market.
Contribute to Pork Research
Learn more about how you can help advance the pork industry through ongoing research.
Environment
Correctly Classifying the Source of Fecal Waste in Surface Waters
This study continued source tracking efforts for fecal waste in the Stockinghead Creek Watershed and expanded surface water testing to sights previously monitored by the NC Department of Environmental Quality and the NC Legislature funded Rivernet program.
Animal Well-being
Evaluation of transmammary-delivered firocoxib and a vapocoolant spray to alleviate pain in piglets after surgical castration and tail docking
This study aimed to assess a novel strategy for pain management of piglets after routine processing procedures. By providing the sow an analgesic drug that is able to cross the blood-milk barrier in the mammary gland, nursing piglets can be noninvasively provided pain relief transmammary prior to surgical castration and tail docking.
Swine Health - Foreign Animal Disease
Evaluation of Processing Fluids and Other Novel Sample Types for the Detection and Surveillance of Less-Virulent ASFV Strains
Based on the data from this study, we can suggest that PF is suitable to screen young swine herds for ASF.
Animal Science
Optimizing late finishing pig feed efficiency, carcass yield, and economic return
The multi-facetted project focused on optimizing late finishing pig feed efficiency, carcass traits, and economic return through feeding practices is essential for the sustainability of pork production.
Animal Science
Interactive effects of pelleting and particle size reduction of corn on net energy and amino acid digestibility in corn-soybean meal diets fed to group-housed pigs
The objective of this research was to demonstrate interactive effects of pelleting and reducing particle size of corn on net energy and nutrient digestibility in feeds for growing pigs.
Swine Health
An African Swine Fever (ASF) positive cohort study: Validating various PCR tests and sample types for African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) detection in boars; and determining the possibility of transmission via artificial insemination
The first study using experimentally ASFV inoculated adult, commercial boars to determine which sample types and PCR procedures were optimum in detecting ASFV in boars and gilts. Additionally, it proved that insemination of ASFV infected semen to naïve gilts resulted in transmission of the virus.
Swine Health
Practical strategies for improving swine oral fluid PCR performance
The goal of this current research was to identify practical methods to improve the detection of PRRSV, IAV-S, and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (MHP) nucleic acids in swine oral fluids by evaluating sample treatments reported to achieve improved nucleic acid detection.
Swine Health
Evaluation of meat juice and muscle swabs using OIE-approved real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from swine with clinically compatible signs of ASF in Ugandan slaughterhouses
This research project assessed the African swine fever virus’s (ASFV) nucleic acid detection in slaughter expedient samples: diaphragm meat juice, diaphragm muscle swab, spleen, and spleen swab.
Animal Science
Evaluation of vitamin A and a novel beta-carotene product to improve mammary development and immune function in gilt development
The purpose of this study was to determine if supplementing the gilts with vitamin A or beta-carotene can improve antibody responses and improve mammary development prior to puberty.
