Farmscape for October 30, 2006  (Episode 2287)

In its first year of delivery enrollment in Assiniboine Community College's Swine Transportation and Handling program has topped 200.

Just under one year ago Assiniboine Community College launched its Swine Transportation and Handling course.

So far just over 200 have completed the training.

Course instructor Deanne Miller notes the program consists of two components, the National Pork Board's Trucker Quality Assurance program and a Canadian component which was developed by ACC.

Clip-Deanne Miller-Assiniboine Community College's

The US manual, first of all, includes chapters on the drivers attitude, using animal behavior and natural instincts, the flight zone and point of balance, aggressive handling, loading and unloading of pigs, the fitness of the hogs, facilities and equipment, the conditions of the truck and environment, things like space, weather conditions and so on, transporting issues, biosecurity, laws and regulations and an emergency response plan.

We have a Canadian manual that's in addition to the US manual.

We felt as an industry that the US component or manual did not have enough information on certain topics and it actually missed a few topics like the CQA, handling weanlings, biosecurity and of course the Canadian regulations so we just wrote the Canadian portion as an addendum to the US manual.

It has just extra material and more detail on the CQA or the Canadian Quality Assurance program, the Animal Care Assessment Tool, cold weather hauling, handling early weaned pigs and specifically our Canadian regulations.

Miller says the program is for anyone involved in the loading, unloading and transportation of hogs, especially truckers, but anybody in the barn or at packing plant, should take the course.

She notes many US processors require TQA certification to deliver to their plants and it's expected the training will eventually be required in Manitoba as well.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.

       *Farmscape is a presentation of Sask Pork and Manitoba Pork Council