U.S. Hog Breeding Herd Structure (Released September 24, 2004)

摘要

The U.S. breeding herd efficiency continues to increase over time. This report continues a periodic review of changes in the make up of the breeding herd and trends in its efficiency. The last review, released in September 2002, reviewed the industry as of the 2001 production year. This report compares the current evaluation to that time period. The average number of pigs per year per breeding herd animal (includes sows, gilts, and boars) was 16.9 in 2003, up from 16.2 in 2001. The steady increase in average pigs per breeding animal was largely due to the increase in the number of litters per sow per year. This increase in productivity continued to be a factor in the breeding herd decline of 3 percent since 2001. (Chart 1 and 2). Much of the increase in the efficiency of the U.S. hog breeding herd over the last 5 to 10 years can be attributed to the shift in size of operations from smaller, less efficient to larger, more efficient operations. As a larger proportion of pig crop production is accounted for by operations with 5,000 or more head, the average pigs per breeding animal will likely continue to rise. However, at a point in the future where consolidation of inventory may slow, advancements in technology and herd health will contribute more to the measurement of efficiency than the shift of production to larger operations.