7. With a partner, act out the roles below based on Task 6. Then, switch roles.

Use language such as:

- Are you suggesting we switch to …

- I don’t think that’s a good idea.

- We can charge a lot more for …

Student A: You are a rancher. Talk to Student B about:

- grass-fed cattle

- growth hormones

- costs and prices

Student B: You are an assistant to a rancher. Answer Student’s A’s questions.

Writing

8. Use the conversation from Task 7 to fill out rancher’s memo. Include the reasons, costs and benefits of switching to grass-fed beef.

Memo: all staff

Soon, we will ________________________________

That’s because ______________________________

This means _________________________________

But we can also ______________________________

Let me know if you have any questions.

_________________________ Owner, Jackson Ranch

Unit 8

SWINE INDUSTRY

1. Read the page from an agricultural journal. Then, mark the following statements as true (t) or false (f).

1 _____ Providing minimal static space leads to healthier hogs.

2 _____ Social space is recommended in farrow-to-finish farms.

3 _____ Farrow-to nursery farms only need dynamic space.

Journal of livestock Production

Volume 12, Issue 4, Spring 2011

Dr. Carol Braun and Dr. Charles Pierce

Many swine farms do not provide optimal space arrangements. We studied twenty sow farms to learn about the best space arrangements in use today. Below are the findings from our research.

The space requirements are different depending on the type of farm. Nevertheless, it appears important to provide more than minimally required static space. Otherwise, hogs tend to be sicker and less productive. In farrow-to-finish farms, providing social space does not add additional value. Therefore, we found that it is sufficient to provide adequate dynamic space.

2. Match the words (1-6) with definitions (A-F).

1 ____ hog 4 ____ dynamic space

2 ____ sow farm 5 ____ farrow-to-finish farm

3 ____ litter 6 ____ farrow-to-nursery farm

A a group of baby pigs

B a farm that raises female pigs

C enough space for an animal to move

D a farm that raises pigs to market weight

E a pig that has achieved market weight

F a farm that raises pigs until they are weaned

3. Write a word that is similar in meaning to the underlined part.

1 The female pig just had another litter. _ _ _

2 Larger pens provide space that allows animals to interact with one another. _oc_ _ _ s_ _c_

3 The amount of space required to contain an animal’s body not enough; the pig needs room to move. st_ _ _ _ _ p_ _e

4 Raising pigs and related animals is difficult. _w_ _ _

4. Listen and read the page from an agricultural industry journal again. Why is it better to provide more space for hogs? (t. 35)

5. Listen to a conversation between two swine farmers. Choose the correct answers. (t. 36)

1. What is the farmer’s problem?

A There is not enough storage space.

B The sow pens have no static space.

C The sows have decreased productivity.

D The old barn is not big enough for the sows.

2. What will the farmers likely do next?

A increase feed rations

B build additional pens

C rearrange the sow pens

D move animals into the old barn

6. Listen again and complete the conversation.

Farmer 1: I’m worried. Our sows aren’t as productive as they used to be.

Farmer 2: It started when we changed those pens to storage space.

Farmer 1: Yeah. The sows seem restless with less room to move around.

Farmer 2: You might be on to something. What if we increase their social space?

Farmer 1: I don’t know. We don’t have much room 1 ________ ________ _________.

Farmer 2: Well, I read an interesting article about this problem. It said social space makes a big difference in 2 ________-_______-________ farms like ours.

Farmer 1: I guess we overlooked that when we used those pens for storage.

Farmer 2: Well. We can fix it. Let’s get all the storage out of those pens. We can 3 __________ a few other pens so the sows can interact.

Farmer 1: That’s not a bad idea.

Farmer 2: But what can we 4 ________ ________ storage?

Farmer 1: I think we can 5 _________ ________ _______ in the old barn.

Farmer 2: 6 ________ ________.