EU: Pig population increases slightly
The results varied considerably across the 13 reporting countries. Overall, these 13 EU member states had a total pig population of 121.8 million, an increase of 0.5% over the previous year. Denmark recorded the strongest growth at 5.6%, followed by Hungary at 3.8% and Spain, the EU's largest pig producer, reporting an increase of 3.6%. France also saw a slight increase of 0.8%.
The population declined significantly in Ireland (7.4%) and the Netherlands (6.0%). Romania reported a decrease of 3.2%, Belgium (2.0%), Austria (1.4%), Germany (1.2%), and Italy (1.1%). Populations remained virtually stable in Sweden (-0.4%) and Poland (-0.1%).
Breeding sow population is declining
In contrast to the overall herd size, breeding herds again showed a significant decline: The number of breeding sows in the EU-13 fell by 2.9% compared to the previous year. Only Hungary reported a significant increase of 5.4%, while Denmark (+0.5%) and France (+0.6%) saw minimal increases.
There were quite significant declines in sow herds in the remaining 10 countries – especially in the Netherlands (–7.0%), Spain (–5.0%), and Poland (–4.5%). How the decline in sow herds will affect EU pork production in the coming year remains to be seen.
In Spain, the EU's largest pig-producing country, market observers do not expect a decline in production despite the reported decline in breeding sows. This is attributed to higher piglet numbers per sow, as the PRRS variant Rosalia can now be better controlled. At the same time, local industry representatives consider the 5% decline in sow numbers reported in the livestock census to be possibly too high.
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