Performance data continue to accumulate to support that these buildings and pig flow are economically viable compared to the traditional nursery and finishing flow. In these facilities, pigs are weaned directly into a finishing-style building and remain until slaughter. Similar to other production methods, the weaning age is less than 21 days. Some producers are using a combination of plastic flooring and cement slats to provide an improved comfort area for the pigs. The mats usually remain in the pens for one to two weeks.
Feed is spread on the mats for the first two or three days in the same manner as in the nursery.
The disadvantages are increased facility cost and less efficient facility square footage utilization. The construction costs are similar to the typical finishing buildings. The operational costs are slightly higher than a finisher because of heating. Summary Single fill wean-finish buildings offer a potentially lower cost pig flow with more flexibility than the typical system. The benefit of stock people not moving multitudes of pigs and the resulting decreases in stress of pigs may outweigh the present benefits of a typical system.