AGRICULTURE
Scientists go whole hog on pig-stress study

BILL GRAVELAND
The Canadian Press
March 3, 2008

CALGARY -- Even the mental picture of a truckload of hogs on its way to market is enough to draw frowns from empathetic animal lovers, but researchers are taking a scientific approach to relieving the stress suffered by the pigs on those journeys.

Ensuring the welfare of the hog is one goal of Agriculture Canada scientists and members of the pork industry. But the bottom line is still the bottom line.

"There's a huge economic impact. There is no one in the business that would intentionally try to harm animals, because there's simply a huge economic loss associated with that," explained Al Schaeffer, a research scientist for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lacombe, Alta.

Mr. Schaeffer and his colleague Clover Bench have been co-ordinating a review of the existing recommendations, standards, laws and regulations on pig welfare during transport for the past three years to compare them with current scientific literature. It will be used to ensure that coming changes to Canada's Livestock Transport Code of Practice are based on scientific data.
The pork industry is big business for Canadian producers who export seven million live hogs each year.

Mr. Schaeffer acknowledges most people don't understand what the transport and handling of hogs can do to an animal - or the meat it eventually produces.

"If you go for a good plane ride yourself and go through security and all that, it's a stressful day. It's the same with animals," he said. "Even though one would think walking up a ramp into a truck wouldn't be that stressful, it's novel to the animals because they don't do it very much."

Stress causes a number of physical changes that can affect food flavour and quality.

The changes to the meat can lead to what the industry calls pale-soft-exudative meat or dark-firm-dry meat.

"What we found more than that - it tends to affect flavour nodes. If an animal is transported too long, you can well imagine, flavour nodes are changed, which affects tenderness and sweetness," Mr. Schaeffer said.

A change in the body chemistry can also increase the bacteria in the animal.

"It will change the texture," acknowledges Jodi Hesse, the director of policy and communications for Alberta Pork.

"The meat becomes more watery and more pale-looking. It's not something you would see commonly in Canada. It's not a good product that sells," she said.