September 27, 2004

US Swine-Breeding Productivity Better; Offsets Fewer Sows
 
Swine-breeding productivity in the U.S. continued to increase through 2003, offsetting a decline in the sow herd, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a report released Friday.
 
The number of pigs produced per sow per year increased to an average of 16.9 in 2003, up from 16.2 in 2001, according to the U.S. Hog Breeding Herd Structure report, produced by USDA's National Agriculture Statistics Service.
 
"The steady increase in average pigs per breeding animal was largely due to the increase in the number of litters per sow per year," the report said. "This increase in productivity continued to be a factor in the breeding herd decline of 3 percent since 2001."
 
Also, USDA concluded that large swine operations, delineated as those with more than 5,000 head, are growing in output and increasing in number while smaller operations are declining.
 
The larger farms accounted for 79% of U.S. swine production in 2003, up from 73% in 2001, USDA said, and smaller operations, those that produce less than 5,000 head, accounted for just 21% of production in 2003, down from 25% in 2001.
 
There were 2,270 large swine farms in operation in 2003, according to the report, 70 more than in 2001. The number of small operations declined to 71,300 in 2003, down from 79,000 in 2001.