EU sow herd down 32% over the past decade

Between 2004 and 2024, the European Union (EU) saw a 32.4% reduction in its breeding sow population, falling from 15.02 million to 10.15 million animals. Despite this decline, total pork production remained virtually unchanged, with 21.1 million tonnes in 2004 and 21.04 million tonnes in 2024, according to pig33.com.

Spain stood out as the only exception in the EU, slightly increasing its sow numbers from 2.606 million in 2004 to 2.611 million in 2024, while boosting pork production by nearly 60% over the same period.

In contrast, several countries recorded significant drops in sow inventories:

• Germany: from 2.47 million in 2004 to 1.39 million in 2024 (–43%)

• France: from 1.29 million to 0.83 million (–36%)

• Netherlands: from 1.12 million to 783,000 (–30%)

• Poland: from 1.65 million to 600,000 (–63%)

Italy and Portugal posted smaller declines than the EU average, with reductions of 17.6% and 15.7%, respectively.