Improvement of environmental quality in intensive pig farming through an integrated bioactivation program for the control and prevention of swine mycoplasmal pneumonia

The decline of pig health status is the effect of a bad air quality inside breeding facilities related to the concentration of biogases derived from the action of faecal microbial flora on urine nitrogen. Bioactivation of the environment with bacterial-enzymatic mixtures is able to reduce this chemical emanation. An experimental trial has been performed to evaluate the efficacy of the bioactivation treatment to prevent mycoplasmal pneumonia in finishing pigs. Treated and untreated groups, different treatment schemes and different floors have been compared. The ammonia concentration was checked by a chemical method. M. hyopneumoniae infection was evaluated through seroprevalence and by a quantitative lung-scoring system. For all slaughter-lots average carcass weight was recorded. The decrease of the environmental ammonia concentration resulted in lower lung-scores and higher carcass weight.