Huesca will host the Porc d’Or 2019 awards
- On November 29 Huesca will host the XXVI edition of the prestigious awards for excellence in pig production
The Institute of Agri-Food Research and Technology (IRTA) has launched a new edition of the prestigious Porc d’Or awards for excellence in pork production. The XXVI gala of those already known as “Oscars del porcino” will take place in Huesca, in the Palacio de Congresos of this city, on November 29. This day Huesca will become the neuralgic center of the porcine gathering more than 800 professionals of the sector.
The gala of the Porc d’Or awards, of itinerant character, has been held in more than six different provinces, all of them with a common element: its great livestock tradition. Something that also identifies Huesca that, with its more than four million of pigs, of which about 220,000 are breeding sows, it is only surpassed in census by the province of Lleida *.
One more edition, the awards have the unconditional support of the company Zoetis, which has accompanied IRTA in the celebration and delivery of the awards during these 26 years, in addition to having the Interprofessional (Interporc) as a co-organizer.
Selected the best pig farms of 2019
Last Friday, July 12, the jury of the Porc d’Or awards met at the IRTA headquarters in Lleida to decide on the 120 nominations and the 45 winners, from more than 800 farms and 900,000 breeding sows adhered to the BDporc (Bank of Reference of the Spanish Pig sector), based on the regulatory criteria and the Porc d’Or awards regulations.
In this way, the Porc d’Or awards are granted to the farms that periodically send their data to BDporc, according to the criteria of Longevity (LG), Birth Rate (TP) and Numerical Productivity (PN). The aspirant farms belong to five different categories depending on the census in the farm (1st to 200 sows, 2nd from 201 to 500 sows, 3rd from 501 to 1,000 sows, 4th from 1,001 to 2,000 sows and 5th over 2,001 sows). Eight farms are nominated for each criterion in each category, resulting in a total of 120 nominations. In the case of the winners, a gold, silver and bronze statuette is awarded to the first, second and third place, respectively, for each criterion and category, adding the total of the 45 prizes.
To these 45 awards we must add the three special awards that highlight outstanding characteristics of the farms, such for their measures of animal welfare, sustainability, innovation and efficiency. These awards are: the Porc d’Or with Diamond; the Porc d’Or of the MAPA to “Health, Animal Welfare and Environment”; and the Porc d’Or Zoetis to Innovation.
The jury in charge of determining which farms are nominated for the prizes and which will be awarded is made up of personalities of recognized prestige in the swine industry, livestock and administration.
The members of the jury that met for this XXVI edition of the Porc d’Or awards were: Pilar León, Josefa Lueso, Pablo Bernardos and Jesús Salas, of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA); Quim Xifra and Montserrat Álamos, from the Department of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of the Generalitat de Catalunya (DARP); Jordi Baliellas, of the Interprofessional of Porcino de Capa Blanca (INTERPORC); Miguel Ángel Higuera, of the National Association of Porcine Cattle Producers (ANPROGAPOR); Adoración Llorente, from the National Association of Swine Cattle Breeders (ANPS); Abelardo López, of the Galician Association of Porcine Veterinarians (AGAVEPOR); Gerardo Blanco, from the University of Lleida (UdL); Antonio Palomo, from the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM); Mariví Falceto, from the University of Zaragoza (UNIZAR); Javier Abadías, from the leading animal health company Zoetis; the consultant Carlos Piñeiro; and Raquel Quintanilla, Nuria Alòs and Pedro López, on behalf of IRTA.
* Livestock Survey November 2018. MAPA.
