SASKATOON – The simple and relatively inexpensive practice of sprinkling canola oil in hog barns is being called a breakthrough by agricultural medicine researchers looking at ways to protect the long-term health of hog farmers.
Odor is a nuisance in the hog business, but invisible dust particles generated from fecal matter can be deadly to those who work long hours in confined barns for extended periods.
But researchers at the University of Saskatchewan’s agricultural medicine department say the occasional sprinkling of canola oil on the pigs and throughout the barn will result in a dramatic decrease in dangerous dust.
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“We really believe this method could be a breakthrough in the protection of the health of pig farmers,” James Dosman told producers at the Saskatchewan pork industry symposium Nov. 12 in Saskatoon.
The sprinkling treatments add about $1.80 per year to the regular cost of raising one hog.
Dosman worked with a research team at the Prairie Swine Centre to evaluate the health of people who worked in a traditional confined hog barn compared to those in one treated with canola oil.
Method conducted
The experiment involved 20 non-smoking males around 23 years old divided into two groups, each with the same characteristics but exposed to different barns.
Dosman said the endotoxin levels, which cause inflammation in the lungs, dropped dramatically in the oiled barn, from 4,000 endotoxin units per cubic metre in the regular barn to 400 in the treated barn.
“Coughing, shortness of breath and chest tightness was dramatically decreased in those working in the oil barn,” he said.
As well, dust in the oil-treated barn was more than 10 times lower. The test showed three milligrams per cubic metre of dust in the regular barn compared to .25 mg/cubic metre in the treated barn.
The experiment also uncovered significantly higher white blood cell counts in men who worked in barns not treated with canola oil. From six, which is the average in Canada, their white blood cell count climbed to 8.75 per microlitre of blood. This shows their bodies were reacting to an invading bacteria and fighting to get rid of it. A microlitre is one-millionth of a litre.
Nasal cell counts, which can indicate how much damage is occurring in the lungs, also jumped dramatically in those who worked in the regular barns. Before the experiment, the subjects’ levels were 18,000 cells per millilitre While cell counts in workers in the oiled barns remained at 18,000, those in regular barns saw their counts jump to an average of 43,000.
“The dust you can’t see with your eyes can penetrate into the system through the upper respiratory tract,” said University of Illinois associate agricultural engineering professor Yuanhui Zhang, who worked with Dosman on the experiment.
“The inflammation in the lungs in subjects in the regular barns is simply not taking place in barns treated with canola oil,” he added.
While a detailed human respiratory response has not been measured, a second experiment, headed by Dr. Ambikaipakan Sen-thilselvan, found lung function of people working in confined hog barns declines faster than that of grain farmers and non-farmers.
Senthilselvan told the conference that likely due to the confinement factor, swine farmers’ lung function declines twice as fast as a non-farmer. Grain farmers also experience a decline, but it is less dramatic.
Canola most practical
Researchers also tested baby oil, mineral oil and a few others, and all had the same effect on controlling dust. Researchers recommend crude canola oil because it is the cheapest and is readily available on the Prairies.
For hog producers who decide to try canola oil treatments in their pig barns, researchers recommend sprinkling crude canola oil at a pressure of 30 psi in normal temperatures, Zhang said.
The recommended schedule is 40 ml per sq. metre for the first two days, 20 ml for the next two days, then once every second week.
