March 9, 2010

TOPIGS pig breeding database reaches 20-million mark

Pigbase, the breeding database of breeding organisation TOPIGS, has reached the threshold of 20 million pigs.

In a press release, the breeding organisation, headquartered in Vught, the Netherlands, says it is the biggest database of its kind in the world.

The piglet that became the 20-millionth pig in Pigbase was born on February 15 at the organisation's nucleus breeding farm in Rio Verde, Brazil.

In Pigbase, all data from the organisation's breeding pigs are checked and stored so that the breeding values of all current breeding pigs can be calculated on a daily basis. That facilitates a more precise selection for a quick and balanced genetic progress.

This results in pigs with a high predisposition for traditional key outcomes such as carcass quality, growth, feed conversion, litter size etcetera. Yet in addition to these, new characteristics such as vitality, sustainability, mothering characteristics and social behaviour are also genetically improved in the breeding programme.