September 9, 2009

Austrian pig stocks have reached 3.151 million animals, a 2.9-percent rise compared to the data from the last national census in December 2008.

An increase in piglets and young pigs primarily contributes to this rise, whose numbers rose by 4.4 percent to 1.673 million animals.

The stock of fattening pigs rose during the same period by 1.4 percent to 1.179 million animals while the stock of breeding sows almost remained constant at 292,000.

At regional level the three important regions in pig farming Lower- and Upper Austria as well as Styria show a rise in holdings of just over three percent each.

So 72.2 percent of Austrian pig holdings based there were able to raise their share of the total pig stock to 92.5 percent. The former rates were 69.9 percent and 92.3 percent respectively.

Structurally the continuing trend towards concentration of the sector remains with the rise of the mean number of stocks in just six months from 80 to 86 animals per holding.