On May 6, 2025, the University of Copenhagen, AVANT coordinator, will host the AVANT–PIG PARADIGM Stakeholder Event, bringing together researchers, veterinarians, policymakers, and industry representatives …
This year marked significant progress for the AVANT project in its mission at developing alternatives to antimicrobials for the management of bacterial infections in pigs. As we close this chapter, we reflect on the key achievements and milestones of 2024 that reflect strong collaboration, scientific innovation, and dedication to testing the efficacy and sustainability of alternatives to antimicrobials for the management of pig enteritis, as this disease condition accounts for the majority of antimicrobials used in food animals.
During this year, AVANT has delivered numerous milestones, reflecting the project’s dedication to animal health and sustainable pig faming:
On June 13th, the AVANT project organized a workshop in Heraklion, Crete. This hybrid AVANT workshop brought together around 90 participants to discuss the challenges and market potential of antibiotic-free pork production.
The AVANT workshop evaluated the feasibility of antibiotic-free farming as a strategy to reduce antibiotic use. Key topics of discussion included its viability, critical success factors, economic sustainability for producers, potential drawbacks, and strategies to foster consumer acceptance. The goal was to explore the benefits, challenges, and practical aspects of antibiotic-free pork production.
The AVANT consortium believes that “Antibiotic use should be minimized as much as possible while ensuring adequate animal health and welfare. Antibiotic-free production builds on existing best practices and offers a viable strategy to minimize antibiotic use in pig production. Clearly defining and promoting this production system – while addressing aspects of animal health protection – can help achieve the EU Farm-to-Fork Strategy’s goal of cutting overall EU sales of antimicrobials for livestock by 50% by 2030, without compromising animal welfare or the economic sustainability of pig farming”.
AVANT also showcased its achievements at key scientific events, including the 3rd International Conference Antimicrobial Resistance – current state and perspectives, the European Researcher’s Night and the 17th International Symposium on Veterinary Epidemiology and Economics.
As AVANT enters 2025, priorities will focus on the finalization of the project. Key upcoming milestones include several scientific publications, the quantification of the potential benefits on antimicrobial consumption at farm and EU levels derived from large-scale adoption of the AVANT interventions.
From all of us at AVANT, we wish you a joyful holiday season and a sustainable new year!
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Antibiotic resistance has emerged as one of the most pressing challenges of our time, threatening both human and animal health. The overuse of antibiotics in livestock in the realm of the pig farming & pork industry, has exacerbated this crisis, raising concerns about consumer food safety and environmental sustainability.
In order to boost the dissemination activities of the project, RTDS Association, as Dissemination and Communication leader of the project, applied AVANT for expert services to increase and valorize project results through standardization. The main interest was to identify relevant standardization committees (TCs) and standards as well as to get support on how to contribute to standardization in the field of animal health and the reduction of antibiotic use for sustainable pig farming.
AVANT addressed the human health risk posed by excessive antimicrobial use in veterinary medicine due to the potential transfer of resistant bacteria. Focused on managing pig enteritis, a leading reason for antimicrobial use in food animals, AVANT explored various solutions, including gut microbiome modulators, innovative medicines targeting pathogens or enhancing the pig’s immune response, and feed-based preventive strategies. After pre-clinical studies that considered regulatory aspects, the most promising interventions were tested in farm trials. Mathematical modelling also played a key role in predicting how these alternatives could reduce antimicrobial use.
RTDS in collaboration with the HSB expert Rene Lindner identified the relevant standardization committees:
The project was encouraged to proactively engage with identified standardization committees and align project results with standardization frameworks for potential uptake. The expert recommended preparing to launch a a CEN Workshop Agreement (CWA) about six months before the project ends to ensure thorough integration. Continuous, constructive exchanges with the expert were beneficial and raised awareness of standardization, yet additional partner engagement was needed to fully realize AVANT’s standardization objectives.
The project actively engaged and contacted the relevant identified standardization committees and present the draft results for potential uptake. During 2025, a concrete standardization strategy, including a plan of re-approaching the identified TCs and a summary of standardization potentials deriving from the project results, will be discussed with project partners and will be set up. Potentially, a CWA could be developed out of the project results, not later than 6 months before the projects end in order to ensure that this will be carried out properly. Additionally, an alignment with activities of the ArMoR cluster will ensure a wider application and contribution to the envisaged standardization activities.
Find more information about AVANT as success story of HSBooster:
https://www.hsbooster.eu/success-stories and https://zenodo.org/records/14327971
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On June 13th, the AVANT project organized a workshop in Heraklion, Crete. This hybrid AVANT workshop brought together around 90 participants to discuss the challenges and market potential of antibiotic-free pork production.
Prof. Luca Gardabassi, the coordinator of AVANT, led the workshop, providing an update on the project’s progress as it enters its fourth year. He highlighted two key interventions chosen by AVANT based on pre-clinical studies and regulatory requirements: Faecal filtrate transplantation (FFT) and Fibre-rich diet based on alfa-alfa.
Overcoming regulatory gaps and cultural barriers is essential to introducing innovative alternatives to antibiotics in pig farming. While the most effective alternatives can reduce antibiotic use, they cannot eliminate the need for antibiotics in disease control. Minimizing antimicrobial use (AMU) without compromising animal health and welfare requires a holistic approach, including improved farm and animal management practices to reduce the prevalence of diseases.
The project trials conducted in the Netherlands (completed) and currently ongoing in Denmark and France aim to assess clinical efficacy and effect on antimicrobial use (AMU).
AVANT workshop June 13th, Crete, Greece (Image@RTDS )
The AVANT workshop evaluated the feasibility of antibiotic-free farming as a strategy to reduce antibiotic use. Key topics of discussion included its viability, critical success factors, economic sustainability for producers, potential drawbacks, and strategies to foster consumer acceptance. The goal was to explore the benefits, challenges, and practical aspects of antibiotic-free pork production.
Dr. Jean-Noël Sialelli shared insights from the French experience, covering both upstream and downstream facets of the pig supply chain (illustrated in figure 1 below).
Successfully minimizing antibiotic use in pig production requires strong management decisions and the active involvement of all stakeholders, alongside innovations across various departments. Key strategies include developing tools to measure current practices, adopting a step-by-step approach to leverage quick wins, and implementing a test-and-learn policy that focuses on cause analysis and action deployment.
Figure 1: The process of pork production until distribution (source @Cooperl)
In discussions about pig welfare, various stakeholders bring distinct perspectives and motivations. Consumers, often uninformed and driven by economic concerns, prioritize affordable bacon with little regard for production practices. Politicians, ideally well-informed and economically independent, must balance legislative decisions with voter approval, often avoiding unpopular measures. Farmers, driven by market demands, focus on cost-efficiency and productivity; making them economically dependent and vulnerable to price fluctuations. Veterinarians, though knowledgeable, often find their influence limited in the broader conversations about animal welfare and production standards due to their economic dependence.
Anne Stine Mikkelsen from Klintebygaard Veterinary Practice in Denmark discussed the evolution of antibiotic-free pork production, which began in 2015 and continued until 2023. The transition faced diminishing economic support over time. Pigs are raised without antibiotics from birth to slaughter with exceptions for coccidial treatment and sow treatment during lactation.
Key measures include extending lactation periods, using vaccines, and implementing strict hygiene and environmental controls to address health issues like joint inflammation, umbilical hernias, respiratory infections, and piglet diarrhea. Despite persistent challenges such as controlling joint infections and deciding on treatments without antibiotics, the overall antibiotic use remained unchanged, although there was a reduction in respiratory diseases among weaned piglets. Achieving a 70% approval rate for antibiotic-free pork proved feasible but required higher costs and specialized staff, emphasizing the importance of high hygiene standards, reduced infection pressure, and early piglet care.
Andreas Palzer from the Federation of Veterinarians emphasized that veterinarians in the European pig industry support the current goal of maintaining pig health while minimizing treatments, which aligns with today’s production ideals. The daily role of veterinarians involves keeping pigs healthy, and many countries, including Germany, France, Denmark, and the Netherlands, have implemented systems to control and reduce antibiotic use. However, even in the healthiest systems, pigs can still fall ill and require treatment. There is a significant concern about the potential negative effects on animal welfare, communication challenges with consumers, and the broader impact on the meat industry. Ultimately, these challenges are deeply intertwined with economic considerations.
Jonathan Rushton from the University of Liverpool highlighted a broad consensus on reducing antimicrobial use (AMU) in livestock to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR). While eliminating antibiotics in pork production is technically feasible, it represents significant economic challenges due to necessary management shifts and investments, particularly given current pork prices. Food companies, driven by profits and market pressures, play a pivotal role in shaping farming practices and hold considerable political influence impacting the feasibility of antibiotic-free pork. Achieving sustainable antibiotic-free pork production requires supportive social, economic, and political contexts, with careful consideration of both economic and technical factors to inform effective policy and drive change.
Kasper Pedersen from the University of Copenhagen discussed low compliance with quality food standards, highlighted by a recent survey of 1500 respondents from Denmark, Germany, the UK, and China. The survey focused on consumers’ willingness to pay a premium for sustainable pork and revealed that only one in ten respondents across these countries are willing to pay 20% more for sustainable pork, indicating a general reluctance to prioritize environmental or animal welfare concerns over price. Interestingly, while Western consumers emphasized animal welfare in their considerations, Chinese consumers were more concerned about food safety, indicating different regional priorities in sustainable food choices.
For more information about the AVANT workshop on antibiotic-free pork production, visit the AVANT YouTube channel and Zenodo community
Blog Part 1: https://avant-project.eu/antibiotic-free-pork-production/
Workshop: https://youtu.be/07nm2ExFliM?si=90fUGehcwOION6Lm
Zenodo: https://zenodo.org/communities/avanth2020/
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In recent years antibiotic-free pork production has gained significant traction driven by consumer demand for more natural and health-conscious food options. While the idea of raising pigs without the use of antibiotics is appealing, its implementation poses substantial challenges. Traditionally, antibiotics have been used not only to treat illnesses but also to promote growth and prevent diseases in densely populated farming environments.
Transitioning to antibiotic-free pork production requires stringent biosecurity measures, enhanced sanitation practices, and potentially higher costs due to increased mortality rates and slower animal growth. Some producers have successfully adopted these practices, proving that antibiotic-free pork can be a viable reality. However, the broader question remains whether this model can be scaled without compromising animal welfare or economic viability, leading many to wonder if antibiotic-free pork represents a tangible shift in agriculture or merely a niche market aspiration.
Prof. Jens Peter Nielsen from the Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at the University of Copenhagen discussed the “Raised Without Antibiotics” (RWA) pork production in Denmark. According to him, the biggest challenge in RWA pork production is managing the increased prevalence of health issues such as umbilical hernia, which rose from 1.9% to 5.1% after adopting RWA practices.
Producers must carefully decide when to initiate antimicrobial treatment versus when to wait, while also addressing common issues such as diarrhea in piglets or nursery pigs. Economically, the greatest challenges include the extra work time per piglet, the need for higher-quality feed, and the increased reliance on vaccines. Currently, the Danish Crown has terminated the RWA production contracts in June 2023.
The future of antibiotic-free production seems promising, particularly as it becomes increasingly adopted as a standard practice in pig farming. This shift is seen as foundational for responsible production, encompassing animal welfare and sustainability goals such as decarbonization.
The AVANT consortium believes that, “Antibiotic use should be minimized as much as possible while ensuring adequate animal health and welfare. Antibiotic-free production builds on existing best practices and offers a viable strategy to minimize antibiotic use in pig production. Clearly defining and promoting this production system – while addressing aspects of animal health protection – can help achieve the EU Farm-to-Fork Strategy’s goal of cutting overall EU sales of antimicrobials for livestock by 50% by 2030, without compromising animal welfare or the economic sustainability of pig farming.”
Growing consumer demand for healthier and more sustainable products is expected to expand the market share for antibiotic-free pork. To support and sustain this trend, a comprehensive approach is recommended, including financial incentives such as subsidies, along with educational and support systems for farmers.
Continuous monitoring and data-driven evaluation are crucial for demonstrating benefits and refining practices. Recognizing the global impact on agriculture, environment, and consumer preferences, embracing failures as learning opportunities will foster resilience and innovation, ultimately promoting antibiotic-free production as a viable widespread practice.
On June 13th 2024, AVANT organized a workshop in Heraklion, Crete. This hybrid workshop brought together around 90 participants to discuss the challenges and market potential of antibiotic-free pork production. The aim of the workshop was to facilitate dialogue and consensus on specific themes pertinent to the future of antibiotic-free pork production.
The involvement of significant partners such as SEGES, COOPERL and FVE, alongside other relevant national and international stakeholders, offered a diverse array of perspectives and expertise crucial for addressing the multifaceted challenges and opportunities of this type of production in the years to come. One significant outcome could be the development of a position paper encompassing the collective insights, agreements, and recommendations arising from the discussions held during the workshop.
For more information about the workshop, check the second part of this blog dedicated to the workshop, visit the AVANT YouTube channel and Zenodo community
Blog Part 2: https://avant-project.eu/avant-workshop-antibiotic-free-pork-production/
Workshop: https://youtu.be/07nm2ExFliM?si=90fUGehcwOION6Lm
Zenodo: https://zenodo.org/communities/avanth2020/
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The European Commission put into force, by 1st January 2023, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 2023-27. The new CAP 2023-27 will ensure a sustainable future for European farmers, provide more targeted support to smaller farms, and allow greater flexibility for EU countries to adapt measures to local conditions. The new CAP 2023-27 is consistent with the EU legislations and the commitments of the Farm to Fork and biodiversity strategies for the climate and the environment.
EU countries, at national level, produced a thorough analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats-SWOT) of their territory and agri-food sector and submitted their CAP Strategic Plans until 31st December 2021. The Commission supported and assisted each EU country with tailor-made recommendations by identifying the key areas on which each EU country should focus on their national CAP Strategic Plan.
Image credits: (C) CAP Strategic Plan 2023-27
Antimicrobial resistance has a direct impact on human and animal health. There is an evidence that antimicrobial resistance is transmitted to humans through overuse of antimicrobials in animals. The World Health Organization called antimicrobial resistance “an increasingly serious threat to global public health that requires action across all government sectors and society”. [1]
In order to achieve the Farm to Fork objective of 50% sales reduction of antimicrobials in animals by 2030, EU countries set up, in their dedicated CAP Strategic Plans, measures to reduce antimicrobial resistance in animals and increase animal health and welfare. These measures are highly connected with the key challenges of the EU agriculture for safe, nutritious and sustainable food, reductions in food waste, and improvements to animal health and welfare.
Image credits: (C) Farm to Fork strategy
For the CAP 2023-27, farmers will receive a total funding of €6.3 billion for measures to reduce the need to treat animals with antimicrobials. Those measures mainly involve the development of newly built or renovated fam housing systems to improve the animals welfare, rural development measures such as animal welfare labelling schemes or radication programmes for animal diseases. [2]
Financial support to farmers will also be allocated to organic farming for better animal welfare. The support of the current Common Agricultural Policy for organic farming will reach 10% (5.6% in 2020).
Research programme Horizon Europe will also contribute towards improved animal health and welfare. A European Partnership on animal health and welfare will be launched this year. he total indicative EU contribution for the full duration of the partnership is €180 million euro. In line with the European Green Deal, this partnership will contribute to reduction of antimicrobial usage and improvement of animal welfare, as part of its priorities towards fair, healthy and resilient animal production systems, according to to the objectives and targets of the new Common Agricultural Policy and the EU Farm to Fork strategy.
References
[1] http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs194/en
[2] https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/cap-my-country/cap-strategic-plans_en
Horizon Results Booster (HRB) is an initiative of the European Commission which aims to bring a continual stream of innovation to the market and maximise the impact of public funded research within the EU. HRB contributes to the dissemination and exploitation of the project results to the different stakeholders. They offer different services such as building dissemination, exploitation strategy, and business plan development for different projects.
To achieve this, HRB offers free consulting services as building dissemination, exploitation strategy, and business plan development for different projects:
HRB Success stories involve closed or ongoing research projects funded by FP7, Horizon 2020, or Horizon Europe programmes.
Within this program, AVANT collaborates together with other EU projects, AMRILS, BM-FARM, DISARM, FARM-CARE, HealthyLivestock and Roadmap, and formed a Project Group (PG) named “ArMoR –fighting Antimicrobial Resistance in livestock farming”. This project group is formed based on common features in these projects’ activities and results in this research field. The projects in this group aim to develop a conceptual framework to improve understanding of AMR in livestock systems. With HRB, this project group has created a portfolio of results that are suitable for joint dissemination.
The ArMoR Cluster will organise on February 16th a joint event where science will meet industry to discuss reducing antimicrobial use in livestock. The event will take place in Wageningen International Conference Centre (WICC), in Wageningen, The Netherlands.
It will be open free of charge for industries, researchers, veterinarians and farmers and other interested parties.
More information about the event https://healthylivestock.net/conferences/save-the-date-armor-final-event-on-the-16th-of-february/
Image credits: (C) ArMoR Cluster
Watch the ARMOR video here
Check the ARMOR factsheet here
The countdown has started and there are only a few days left until the most magical day of the year. Everybody is shopping for presents or decorating their house with Christmas lights & miniature Santa figurines. Carol whispers travel through the icy air while the smell of cookie dough travels the town from one frozen corner to another.
Of course, pigs play a significant role during this period of the year, not only as a dish for the Christmas days, but have been included in many cultures, since Neolithic times. Pigs can be found in the literature, in religions, in several traditions around the world.
Find out below interesting facts about pigs in traditions, recipes for delicious Christmas snacks and gift for your beloved people.
Since ancient times, pigs were considered as a sign of prosperity and wealth. The ancient Greeks and Romans regarded as privileged those who had many pigs and ultimately food. In German speaking tribes, pigs were also considered a symbol of fertility and strength. In Austria and Germany, in New Year’s Eve, people offer to each other a pig replica, usually made of marzipan, for good luck (Glücksschwein). The pig is often combined with a chimney sweep as a rider and a lucky penny or a four-leaf clover in its mouth. In the German language “Schwein gehabt” (“got a pig”) is a figure of speech and means “to be lucky”.
Image credits: (C) Shutterstock
During Jul in Scandinavia, the Christmas holidays season in Scandinavia, a tradition in Norway and Sweden is to eat rice porridge (known as risgrøt in Norwegian or risgrynsgröt in Swedish) with a single almond hidden in it. Whoever finds the almond receives a marzipan pig as a prize. The same tradition exists for Christmas Eve in Denmark, but with risalamande (rice pudding).
Do you want to recycle your old Christmas tree? you have the chance to turn it into a nice treat for farm animals. Last year, a farm zoo in Tucson, Arizona, accepted leftover trees from a nearby tree farm and fed their pigs and goats. Pigs can benefit from pine trees, to drag them around, play, jump or scratch them.
Image credits: (C) Shutterstock
The British and Irish pigs in a blanket are small, cocktail-sized sausages wrapped in streaky bacon, traditionally served at the Christmas lunch and often on Boxing Day. They should not be confused with the not the pastry-wrapped sausages served in the United States.
Follow the instructions below and have a delicious Christmas dish
Ingredients
Steps
Image credits: (C) Shutterstock
A unique gift idea for your younger friends and your kids can also be a nice book about pigs and Christmas. The “Christmas Pig” by J.K. Rowling is a heart-warming story Jack and his favourite toy, Dur Pig. What will happen though when during Christmas Eve, Dur Pig is lost ? How far will Jack go to find his most treasured thing? A magical Christmas adventure for the whole family.
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Within AVANT, different types of potential alternatives are developed and tested to replace antibiotics in pig production and treat bacterial diseases, such as post weaning diarrhoea. Are people familiar with those alternatives? Would farmers and veterinarians apply those alternatives in pig farms? What do consumers know about antibiotic resistance and would consumer be willing to pay more for pork meat produced with less antibiotics?
All those questions and more are included in a survey that was conducted to understand the level of acceptance of the AVANT solutions.
More than 2,300 veterinarians, pig farmers and consumers, participated in a 15-minutes phone interview, to answer questions associated with the risks of antibiotic use, antibiotic resistance and their impression about the potential AVANT alternatives. The survey was conducted in 5 European countries, all of them included in the list of top-10 pig producing countries across Europe (Spain, Germany, Denmark, France and Poland).
The interviewed farmers and veterinarians had longstanding experience (more than 20 years) in pork production. Consumers were equally divided over both genders (49% men, 51% women) and age categories. Over 90 % of the interviewed consumers also stated they eat meat including pork.
More than 70% of the participants agree that antibiotic resistance is a public health problem and that it is needed to reduce antibiotics in animals. They are aware of the negative impact of antibiotic resistance on human health. Most of the participants would be willing to pay 10% more for meat produced with less antibiotics.
Image credits: (C) RTDS
According to the survey results, the potential benefits of reduced antibiotics usage are healthier food products and safer environment, higher quality of animal and human health, as well as financial benefits for farmer, who would be able to sell their products more easily.
In comparison to existing biosecurity procedures, feeding strategies and probiotics are the most accepted AVANT solutions, followed by immunostimulants. The rest of the project solutions was seen as neutral.
Image credits: (C) RTDS
Farmers and veterinarians were convinced about the safety of those solutions towards pigs and humans, the easiness to apply them in pig farms and their effectiveness to control of post-weaning diarrhoea.
Image credits: (C) RTDS
Consumers are positive about buying meat that has been treated with one of the AVANT interventions and they agree that use of those interventions instead of antibiotics would improve the image of animal farming on their country.
The results of the survey have shown that:
The coordinator of AVANT, Prof. Luca Guardabassi commenting the results mentioned that: “The AVANT survey helps the involved stakeholders to become more familiar with the solutions developed and tested in the project, including also their strengths and weaknesses. The differences in results between the 3 groups in the participating countries show the scepticism to apply those solutions in pig farms for meat production. The results will also support the farm trials at the latest stage of the project and our goal to bring some of those solutions closer to the market”
On behalf of the Federation of Veterinarians Europe (FVE), Jan Vaarten stated: “The results of the survey help to better understand the opinion of participants about the value and the limitations of alternatives for antibiotics. It is also encouraging that consumers understand that antibiotic resistance is an important public health problem and agree that use of antibiotics in animals has to go down. The results of the survey, regardless of differences among stakeholders in the involved countries, confirm that the AVANT approach and developed solutions are well accepted”
For more information about the results, check the survey report in the AVANT website: https://avant-project.eu/public-deliverables/
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