Advantages of the Rotecna electronic feeding system for farrowing sows

Early in his childhood, Albert Eroles knew that his future would be linked to pig breeding. After spending long hours on his father’s and grandfather’s farm, he entered the family business. Once he joined, the family began to make the first changes to the farm, fattening and hosting the first sows. Today, that fattening farm has been converted into a sows farm.  In its efforts to develop its facilities, Eroles installed the electronic feeding system for sows in farrowing and sows in gestation, Rotecna’s Dositronic. He tells us about the excellent results he has obtained.

What is the origin of the farm?
This farm was built by my grandfather and father around 1970, initially as a fattening farm. Years later, my father started introducing some sows. Soon after, with my inclusion in the business, we increased the number of sows, we implemented a closed cycle. Now, with the collaboration of my son Marcel who a few years ago also joined the company, we are working only to have sows and weaning.

How is the farm distributed?
We currently have 298 places in copulation control, 530 in confirmed gestation and 180 in farrowing. Having removed fattening, we have redistributed the farm’s allocation units, and now we are trying to increase the number of sows to 1,000. To reach this number, we are carrying out various expansion and improvement projects on our facilities. In this sense, a while ago, we decided to install the electronic feeding system for sows in farrowing and gestation.

Why did you decide on the Dositronic electronic feeding system?
The decision was mainly motivated by the change in emphasis of the farm activity, that is, by going from a closed cycle to just sows. Since Rotecna told us about this product, we thought it would fit very well with our farm. We found it an exciting development, and the truth is that it has adapted to our needs very well. On the other hand, we also value the nearness to Rotecna and the long relationship that we have maintained with the company.

What benefits would you highlight from using Dositronic?
With the Dositronic system, both in farrowing and gestation, we save a lot of time, something that we consider very important in a farm like this in which only three people work. Specifically, we have gained time when feeding and cleaning feeders since, with this system, I do not waste feed. Then, being more specific, with Dositronic G, we have managed to get the sows to farrowing with outstanding levels of dorsal fat. And with the Dositronic M, the sows are calmer since they can eat whenever they want, which means an improvement in milk production and productivity of the farm. In addition, in summer, it has the added advantage that sows, which during the day usually eat less due to the heat, can eat more at night and in the cooler hours of the day. As for piglets, since sows eat better and produce more milk, the system helps them get to weaning with good weight.

With the Dositronic the sows produce more milk. Photo: Rotecna.

How many feeding curves do they work with?
In farrowing pens, we have four feeding curves: one for first-timers, one for sows with proper weight, one for fat sows, and one for thin sows.

How is the handling of the diet with the Dositronic?
It is straightforward and intuitive, and its main advantage is that, in the same room, thanks to the incorporated LED panel, you can see everything: if the sow has eaten, if she hasn’t eaten, if there has been any problem ... It is also very comfortable to modify the feeding curve and apply it at the push of a button once the sow has given birth.

What does it mean to have all consumption data computerized?
Being able to have all the consumption data on the computer is a convenient advantage since we can see how the sows feed, the amounts of food they eat, those who eat more and those who eat less, etc., and that is a great help to know the modifications that we must make, in the feeding curves, for example. This information is handy in maternity wards, but I especially want to highlight its usefulness in gestation, giving us excellent results.

In addition to Dositronic, what other Rotecna products have you installed on the farm?
Almost all the equipment we have is from Rotecna: the water level valves, the slats, the dividing fences, the dispensers, the automatic ones for feeding, etc.

The use of the Dositronic is very intuitive thanks to the LED panel. Photo: Rotecna. 

In general, what do you value about Rotecna?
Many of us have known and used their material, and one of the things we value most is the attention, proximity and closeness they have with farmers. In addition, the value for money is excellent, and continuously innovating gives us a lot of confidence.

On the other hand, what biosecurity measures do they adopt to reduce the risk of disease transmission?
We have the usual measures to be followed on all pig farms: an external fence, a house that delineates the dirty area from the clean one, where everyone who enters the farm should change their clothes and shoes; we use chlorine dioxide when entering ships to disinfect our feet, hydroalcoholic gel for hands, etc.

What may future challenges surface for the farm?
Our priority is to finish and consolidate the expansion we are doing to produce safely and efficiently and introduce fattening again in a more remote area.