Giving a growing world population access to a quality diet while maintaining animal health and well-being is the challenge confronting various farming channels in the coming years. Virbac supports the changes that must be made to achieve this goal.
In 2050, the earth will be home to nearly ten billion human beings. According to the food and agriculture organization of the United nations (FAO), population growth and a rise in incomes are leading to greater per capita consumption of animal proteins in developing countries. To feed a growing, increasingly urban population, worldwide food production must also grow by 70%, and annual protein production must increase 135% over the same period. An enormous challenge, as the raising of animals is increasingly constrained in terms of environmental protection and animal well-being.
Producing more protein while limiting the impact on water supplies, water table pollution, deforestation and even antibiotic resistance: the equation requires a change in animal farming techniques, focusing on prevention to maintain the animals’ good health and well-being while continuing to treat sick animals. To allow animal producers to anticipate this change, Virbac is developing solutions that help to maintain or recover the animal’s good health, ensuring proper productivity. This approach aligns with the World organization for animal health (OIE), which estimates losses in food production due to diseases in food producing animals at 20%.
Producing animal proteins in a more ethical way is done by developing animal production practices that favor animal well-being (for example, raising egg-laying hens outdoors) and disease prevention. Virbac is an active participant in these new practices, offering a more sustainable approach to animal production techniques.
It relies on three main pillars. First and foremost, promoting vaccination at the herd level. Next, the use of micronutrition to support metabolic and immune functions. Delivered at critical stages (parturition, for example), a trace elements supplementation reduces oxidative stress and de facto, the impact of metabolic or infectious diseases on animals. And lastly, the prudent and individual use of curative treatments. Using these treatment protocols, incorporating diagnosis, technical support and training given to animal producers, Virbac promotes targeted antibiotic treatments. This naturally results in a better dose management, treatments being limited to sick animals and reduced environmental contamination from effluents.
Based on the principles, the Target 150 program, the Virbac specific program for professionals of dairy farming, also offers a sustainable animal production monitoring method based on about thirty performance indicators related to animal well-being and health.
What does an Indian pastoral farm (3 cows on average) have in common with a Brazilian operation of nearly 5,000 acres? From one world region to another, farming models as well as species and their diseases, all vary dramatically. Because of this, Virbac has taken a multi-regional approach to the health of producing animals.
Proximity to farmers and consideration of their daily production work constraints are equally part of Virbac approach. At a time when the number of farms (which are growing larger) is diminishing and a qualified work force is becoming rare, it’s all about simplifying life for professionals. To do this, Virbac is developing innovative solutions like, for example, packaged parasiticides in backpack-style flexible pouches. Another example: the digital maternity swine farming tool, that allows technicians to make on-site diagnosis and provide farmers with recommendations.