The event began with a session on health topics, in which Lars Dettmer (swine veterinarian in Bavaria) and Katharina Neumann (organic farmer, Wolfsegg am Hausruck) spoke about trace element deficiencies in pigs. Following this, Mirjam Lechner (swine consultant, Bavaria) vividly demonstrated the benefits of thermal imaging cameras (thermography) for diagnosing health problems in pigs. Before lunch, this year's Bioschwein Austria Recognition Award was presented to the two organic pig farmers Rudi Rattenberger in Kappel am Krappfeld, Carinthia, and Johann Schlögl in Draßmarkt, Burgenland. Congratulations!

After the lunch break with the usual excellent catering, the afternoon featured a block of presentations on feeding topics, beginning with an overview presentation on roughage and pasture by Stephanie Witten (scientist at the Thünen Institute for Organic Farming, Schleswig-Holstein). This was followed by two presentations on soybean processing on the farm itself, given by Matthias Trimmel (Josephinum Research, Wieselburg) and Andreas Schindler (organic farmer, Burgenland/Hungary). The day concluded with three presentations on barn construction, starting with an overview of current funding opportunities by Gerhard Salzmann (Lower Austrian Chamber of Agriculture), followed by an excerpt from the newly published ÖKL (Austrian Association for Agricultural Engineering and Forestry) barn construction brochure for organic pig farming by Dieter Kreuzhuber (ÖKL), and rounding off with a report by Florian Zeitlhofer (organic farmer, Behamberg) on ​​his experience building a new fattening barn.

Further information

Looking back at the BIO AUSTRIA Farmers' Days 2026

Pictures