On Friday, Cooper Farms held an open house at its new Sandy Ridge Gilt Farm in Cecil. The 179-acre farm will house approximately 1,600 young female pigs beginning in December, where they will remain for about 16–17 weeks, or until they reach about 200 pounds. They will then be moved again to a new facility near Hicksville, which is expected to be completed in April and will house 5,000 sows. The Sandy Ridge farm has animal care features including raised ramps, which allow hogs to walk directly off and on the trucks for movement from one farm to another. In order to prevent illness, anyone entering or exiting the barns must fully shower to wash away any bacteria, and all items coming into the facility will go through a UV box to ensure they do not carry any bacteria to the herd. A biocurtain will be installed at the facility as well to cut down on the dust and smell from the farm. The Crescent News also reports that the new facility will use tunnel ventilation to cool the hogs along with heat lamps to warm them in the winter. The interior of the barn will be kept at a constant 70 degrees.
Sandy Ridge will employ one full-time worker who will care for the hogs on a daily basis, and the farm will be able to provide natural fertilizer for 100 acres per year. Cooper Farms raises and sells more than 148 million live pounds of hogs a year. It has more than 100 family contract growers as well as 10 company-owned hog breeding farms. The company, based in Oakwood, has a total of 1,943 employees. They also raise turkeys and produce more than 74 million dozen eggs a year.
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