The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Sarah Pearce, Research Animal Physiologist with USDA ARS, explains why stress can act as a nutrient thief in pigs. She discusses gastrointestinal health, barrier integrity, inflammation, feed efficiency, stress interactions, and emerging biomarkers that may help predict performance challenges before they occur. Listen now on all major p...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Cierra Kozole, PhD candidate in Swine Nutrition at the University of Guelph, explains how methionine supports lactating sows beyond milk protein synthesis. She discusses updated requirement estimates, source comparisons, methylation demand, and why modern sow genetics may require more precise amino acid strategies. Listen now on all major p...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Eugene Rodberg from Kemin Animal Nutrition and Health discusses how feed ingredients, fat quality, feed hygiene, and water management influence swine performance. He explains the importance of ingredient sourcing, oxidation control, clean feed systems, and water line sanitation to support animal health and productivity during seasonal chall...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. John O'Doherty from University College Dublin continues to explain how preserved grain strategies can improve gut health, nutrient digestibility, microbial stability, and post-weaning performance in pigs. He discusses low-protein diets, maternal nutrition, feed consistency, and the future of biologically aligned swine feeding system...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. John O'Doherty, Full Professor of Monogastric Nutrition at University College Dublin, explains how digestive health in pigs depends on nutrient flow, stomach function, and feed quality. He discusses weaning challenges and microbiome stability to improve gut health and performance. Listen now on all major platforms! "Gut health i...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, we revisit a conversation with Dr. Marco de Mik, Senior Consultant at Schothorst Feed Research, who explores how to enhance gastrointestinal health in piglets for optimal growth. He shares his expertise on how feed formulation, stomach function, and gastrointestinal health directly impact the pig’s growth and development. Learn how to balan...

Drs. David Rosero and Bart Borg discuss the introduction of a new online financial model that estimates the economic value of nutritional strategies to maximize growth potential and profit per pig. Feed4Profit, developed by Iowa State University in collaboration with U.S. Soy, integrates multiple user inputs, including diet formulation, predicted growth performance, and future pricing for ingredie...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Grady Privett, a graduate student at Kansas State University, discusses research evaluating sorghum as a replacement for corn in lactation diets for sows. He discusses particle-size management, feed intake, energy value, and commercial-mill considerations when using sorghum in swine production systems. Learn how sorghum can support sow and...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Julian Arroyave, a research swine nutritionist at Carthage Innovative Swine Solutions, discusses nursery feed budget strategies designed to reduce costs without compromising pig performance. He explains trials comparing high, medium, and low phase 1 and phase 2 feed budgets, including commercial validation data showing improved income o...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Sydney Craig, graduate research assistant at Iowa State University, explains how arginine supplementation in lactating sows may affect piglet livability. She also discusses updated phenylalanine and tyrosine requirements for nursery pigs, highlighting gaps in older research and practical questions for diet formulation. Listen now on all maj...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Gustavo Lima, PhD candidate at Iowa State University, explains how soybean meal net energy is evaluated using growth assays and calorimetry. He discusses caloric efficiency, validation under commercial conditions, and differences between controlled and real-world environments. Gustavo also highlights practical implications for diet formulat...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Anja Strathe, Associate Professor at the University of Copenhagen, explores nutritional strategies for sows during the transition from gestation to lactation. She explains physiological challenges, oxidative stress, and the role of fiber, amino acids, and mineral balance in improving farrowing outcomes and piglet survival. Learn how tar...

In this special re-run episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, we bring back our conversation with Dr. Luciana Rossi, Associate Professor at the University of Milan, who discusses alternatives to antibiotics in swine nutrition. She explores antimicrobial resistance, the role of functional ingredients, and the potential of biochar in improving gut health and sustainability. Tune in now on...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Amy Petry from the University of Missouri discusses how dietary fiber and enzyme technologies influence energy utilization in swine diets. She explains the complexity of fiber, the role of xylanase in reducing digesta viscosity and improving nutrient accessibility, and why production context matters across growth and sow systems. Dr. Pe...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Katelyn Gaffield from Kansas State University and graduate researcher Sierra Collier discuss a nationwide survey evaluating soybean meal quality and consistency. They share key findings on crude protein stability, variation in fat content, trypsin inhibitor levels, and implications for swine diet formulation. The discussion highlights o...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Kwangwook Kim, Assistant Professor at Michigan State University, discusses the use of non-nutritive sweeteners in nursery pig diets. He explains how sucralose and neotame influence feed intake, gut health, metabolism, and the frequency of diarrhea compared to antibiotics. The conversation highlights mechanisms beyond palatability, inclu...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Urbano Ruiz, Professor at the University of São Paulo, explains how amino acid and phosphorus digestibility change as pigs grow. He shares research showing major differences across production phases and highlights the impact of fiber and physiology on nutrient use. Learn how age specific nutrient matrices can improve performance and sus...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Young Dal Jang, Assistant Professor of Non Ruminant Animal Nutrition at the University of Georgia, explains how early life nutrition and creep feeding influence weaning transition and lifetime performance. He discusses milk yield limits, diet complexity, soybean meal risks, and the role of probiotics in gut development and inflammation...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Ilaria Minussi, postdoctoral research associate at Texas A&M University, explains how low protein diets influence pig behavior and performance. She discusses amino acid deficiencies, tail biting risk, and how pigs adjust feed intake when nutritional needs are unmet. Dr. Minussi highlights welfare, environmental impact, and practical...

In this special re-run episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, we bring back our conversation with Casey Neill from Carthage Veterinary Services, who explores the critical aspects of sow and piglet feeding. He breaks down strategies for improving lactation diets, ensuring smooth transitions for nursery pigs, and optimizing feed forms like crumbles and meals for better performance. Tune i...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Jamie Studer, Postdoctoral Research Associate at Iowa State University, explains why the transition from late gestation to lactation is one of the most critical periods for sow productivity and longevity. She discusses postpartum dysgalactia syndrome, metabolic adaptations, immune activation, and nutrient partitioning that influence mil...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Dr. Felipe Hickmann, animal scientist and PhD researcher from Université Laval, Canada, and UFRGS, in Brazil, explains how phytase supplementation influences environmental sustainability in pig production. He discusses life cycle assessment results, phosphorus utilization, manure management, and precision feeding strategies. Learn research...

In this special episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, we bring you the second part of our crossover conversation with The Swine it Podcast Show Canada. Co-host Dr. Ruurd Zijlstra continues the discussion with Dr. Anja Strathe from the University of Copenhagen, focusing on transition diets, fiber strategies, milk production, and feeding management during lactation. Learn practical insig...

In this episode of The Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, Drs. Augspurger and Borg share highlights of the U.S. Soy-sponsored symposium featured at the upcoming ASAS Midwest Section meeting. The Science and Commercial Application of Soybean Meal in Today’s Pig Diets includes the latest research, but with a primary emphasis on practical applications, including an economic assessment in commercial e...

In this special episode of the Swine Nutrition Blackbelt Podcast, we bring you a crossover with The Swine it Podcast Show Canada. Co-host Dr. Ruurd Zijlstra sits down with Dr. Anja Strathe from the University of Copenhagen to discuss practical sow feeding strategies, piglet birth weight, early gestation nutrition, and mortality around farrowing in hyperprolific systems. Dr. Strathe shares how rese...