Inside Pigs
Number of sows in Spain continues to rise
The Spanish pig herd continues its expansion course at full speed. The most recent inventory by the Ministry of Agriculture in the country in May again counted significantly more pigs. In particular, the number of sows counted is skyrocketing.
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A total of 32,41 million pigs were counted in May. That was 3,3%, or 1,04 million, more than in May last year. The increase in animal numbers comes at a time when the pig market is in a real price crisis. Spanish exporters took full advantage of the sales opportunities in Asia for several years, but have now seen these largely disappear. They are also now trying to sell pork on the crowded European market.
A lot more sows
The number of sows and gilts counted has recently increased sharply. This feeds the idea that pork production will increase significantly in the near future. 108.000 more sows were counted in May than in May 2020. An increase of 4,2%. This brings the total number of sows in Spain to 2,66 million.
The fact that this increase in the number of sows is not over yet is evident from the figures for the number of gilts identified in Spain. The number of gilts mated for the first time increased by 8,8% to 297.000. The number of gilts that were not yet pregnant on Spanish farms increased by 11,6% to more than 367.000.
It has already been heard from several quarters in recent months that the Spanish sow herd would grow significantly and that this will have consequences for the Dutch piglet export to Spain. The country has purchased many Dutch piglets in recent years, especially since the end of last year when Germany, traditionally the main buyer of Dutch piglets, significantly reduced the volume requested. The most recent figures suggest that it may not be long before Spanish pig farmers can fill their stables with piglets from their own country.