Breeding characteristics
2 partners and 2 employees
Member CIRHYO
300 sows Farmer
7 bands of 36 sows
Sow Venus
Boar Valens
Weaning 28 days
Feeding FAF
Suckler cows
280 ha
Key figures for the year
14.3 weaned per litter
Team testimonial
“The transition to Venus, […] led to an increase of 0.4 total births and 2 weaned piglets.
“The switch to Venus, combined with other adjustments and an internal reorganization of work, has enabled us to improve by 0.4 total births and 2 weaned piglets. This work has been greatly facilitated by the fact that sows are calmer during farrowing, and require very little intervention and assistance.
Beyond that, the higher the percentage of Venus offspring crossed with Valens, the better the grading of the pigs!”
Team from EARL Simonin Verdanel (50)
Some breeding results and evolution after the Venus transition
Breeding GTTT performance
| GTTT criteria | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Weaned / productive sow / year | 34,7 |
| Live births/litter | 15,7 |
| Weaned / litter | 14,3 |
| Loss rate for live births (%) | 8,9 |
Breeding GTE performance
| GTTT criteria | 2023 |
|---|---|
| TMP | 61,0 |
| Range rate (%) | 93,6 |
| Capital gains (€) | 0,162 |
GTTT and GTE evolutions after the Venus transit
| GTTT criteria | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Weaned / litter | + 2 |
| Loss rate for live births (%) | – 10,5 |
| TMP | + 0,5 |
Expert opinion
Edgar BASSET, Technical Manager CIRHYO
“7 years ago, the farm went from 120 sows to 300 farrow-to-finish sows. Frédéric Vernadel and Fabienne Simonin were faced with a labor shortage. To alleviate this problem, they needed sows that were autonomous during farrowing, with limited intervention and good weaning ability.
The Venus meets their needs perfectly, and has also significantly improved the rate of losses under the dam!