April 11, 2023

Denmark sees drop in pig numbers last year

The number of pigs in Denmark fell by 6% in 2022 compared to the previous year, while there were 7% fewer farms with pigs, according to data from Statistics Denmark.

The average herd size is almost unchanged from 2021 to 2022 after a significant increase year after year with increasingly large pig farms. Pigs include sows, boars, piglets and fattening pigs.

The reason for the slowdown is a tight Danish economy for pig producers. While pig prices have increased by 9% in 2022 compared to 2021, feed prices have risen by much more at 32%. The rising prices of feed again reflect the rising grain prices that followed in the war in Ukraine in 2022.

Danish pig farms have grown larger over the years. The average farm with pigs had 2,900 pigs in 2012 against 5,200 in 2022.

At the same time, there are several very large pig farms. In 2012, 4% of the holdings had at least 10,000 pigs and represented 20% of the total population of pigs.

By 2022, the share of these very large farms had risen to 15% and their share of the herd had grown to 47%.

- Statistics Denmark