Priorities of pig farming in Europe
The livestock farming is not evenly distributed over the surface. Priorities have emerged for the respective sites. In the land-based beef livestock distribution on the regional feed generation focusing is grassland bound and thus less heavily concentrated in two independent areas finishing branches of poultry and pig farming.
For pigs the breeding centers have emerged partly historically. Main driving force was generally poor income performance of the soil. A finishing economy is necessary to have a viable operating basis. In the further course of development was the supply of cheap power feed to the driving force. A modicum of powerful companies of the industries in terms of up - and downstream increased the concentration effect. So-called agglomeration effects accelerated this regional process of concentration, more today falling through its downsides in the weight.
The North-Western room with parts of Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and the North West German finishing areas high-yielding floors, are characterized by less but had the advantage of the proximity of the port. That meant yet inexpensive access to feed from overseas in the past the EU market foreclosure to the world market. Proteins and oilseeds, cassava animal feed were excluded from European import duties and had a feed cost advantage compared to the other EU internal market by 30 to 50% for decades. The conditions are today partially still exist, but much less pronounced.
In France , Brittany with its less profit-rich sites compared to the Paris Basin and the South of France with wine for the pig proved suitable. Today, more than 55% of all pigs are kept in the large areas of France. Protein feed are inexpensive to obtain overseas and the necessary grain produced in the vicinity of Normandy and the other Paris Basin. The main sales regions for pigmeat is Paris. However, the Breton location with a European edge resistance is hardly extensible. French pork supply is around 100%.
With the accession of Spain to the EU in 1986, the Spanish pig industry experienced a boom period with emphasis on the North-East, which brought her to Germany to the second place in the EU. Tourism and rising income meant that Spain has the world's largest pork consumption per head of the population. Meanwhile, Spain has risen to the net exporting country.
In Italy , the pig in the Northern Italian plain with the famous area around Parma focuses. However, it is a manageable size. Italy has only a self-sufficiency rate of 69%.
In the eastern part of the EU, Poland is in the northwestern part of a larger pig density in appearance. However, the small ones are operational and inventory structures little able to compete with its Western neighbors keep to. The herds in almost all Eastern European countries have decreased after joining the EU in 2004 between 25% and 45%.
