550 sows in one big group

It’s a rare sight – 550 pink bodies lying peacefully on straw. Maarten Rooijakkers, pig producer in the south of the Netherlands, keeps his gestating sows in one large group. Correct feeding, selection, heat detection and vaccination is all dependent on identification technology. By Vincent ter Beek Looking out on 550 pink bodies, lying peacefully on straw, Arno van Brandenburg, product manager at Nedap Velos, almost turns philosophical. “The biggest problem about running a pig far