EU pig count Nov / Dec 2019: fewer sows, fewer pigs The latest pig count in 25 EU Member States excluding Spain, Estonia and Slovakia showed a decrease in the EU-25 pig population by -0.6%. The sow numbers decrease by - 0.4% compared to the previous year. The results are very different in the individual Member States. The reduction in inventories is the largest in Bulgaria at -25% due to the ASP. Hungary and Slovenia reduced their holdings by 8.3% and 7.3% respectively. In Germany and Belgium , -2% fewer pigs were counted. France reduced its inventory by -1.5% . The attractive prices have led to increases in pig numbers in some countries.These include Denmark (1%), Poland (1.7%), Great Britain (1.7%), Ireland (2.6%), Sweden (4.5%), Finland (2%) and Latvia (3rd %). Despite the massive ASP problems, the Romanian population has increased again by 2.7%. The massive drop in sow populations of -27% in Bulgaria and -10% in Hungary and Slovenia is striking. Connections with the ASP can also be assumed here. France posted a significantly lower result with -3.3% and Germany with -2.9%. Both countries together should Keep 88,000 fewer dams. In contrast, Holland clearly stands out with a plus of 8.3% . That is approx. 80,000 sows more than last year.This almost eliminates the decline in Germany and France. In Denmark , 1 January 2020 + 0.7% more pigs were counted. Crucial for the positive result are the fattening pigs over 50 kg with an increase of 3.3% at the time of the survey. Some of these animals have already been slaughtered today, the rest will be ready for slaughter. Without this population group, Danish pigs are expected to decline by 0.1%. The number of sows in Denmark increased by 1.25% or 20,000 sows compared to the previous year. Compared to the October 2019 count, there was an increase of 48,000 sows. In the two strongholds of the sow husbandry, Holland and Denmark, they reacted quickly to the rising piglet prices and positioned themselves for 2020. This means that increasing piglet exports from these two surplus countries to Germany are inevitable.In view of the available figures, no major changes in the pig population are to be expected for 2020 as a whole. However, the Spanish numbers can still cause a surprise .
