Want to know more about your environmental footprint? Get additional information about operational costs?

University of Minnesota Extension specialist Erin Cortus and Extension educators Diane DeWitte, Jason Ertl and Sarah Schieck are looking to work with producers in assessing their own operations using the Pig Production Environmental Footprint Calculator. This tool was developed by the National Pork Board, which also helps support and maintain it.

Pork producers have made tremendous strides in productivity, such as measures like the number of pigs weaned per sow, live weight marketed per ton of feed and per-pig space. This progress is continuing, the specialists note. These measures of productivity serve the industry well. However, consumers increasingly want to hear more about how the pork they enjoy eating makes productive use of limited resources, like energy, water and land.

An “environmental footprint” flips the point of view around to consider how much of a limited resource is used to produce a live pig or a pound of pork, the specialists say.

Producers who participate will learn how their operations stand in terms of carbon, water and land footprints. They also will be able to evaluate changes made in their operations, or future changes that could be evaluated in this way.

Contact the Extension specialists by phone or email: Erin Cortus, 612-625-8288 or [email protected]; Diane DeWitte, 507-389-5541 or [email protected]; Jason Ertl, 507-934-7828 or [email protected]; and Sarah Schieck, 320-235-0726, ext. 2004, or [email protected].

All information will be kept confidential.

You can also find additional information and register directly online at z.umn.edu/swinefootprint2018.

Source: University of Minnesota Extension