Pig farming and prevention and treatment of pig diseases

Author: Chief Editor: Wang Lianchun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-03-01
Features: Excerpt: Chapter Overview China's pig farming industry has a history of over 7,000 years. For a long time, pig farming has been closely related to the national economy and people's livelihood. In the past, there were sayings like "raising pigs doesn't make money, turn back and look at the fields" and "farming without raising pigs is like a scholar reading books." Now, pig farming is done for economic benefits. It is estimated that raising one lean-type sow requires an investment of 8,000 to 10,000 yuan, yielding an annual benefit of 1,500 to 2,000 yuan. Producers cannot get economic benefits, which are as secure and profitable as buying government bonds. Pig farming production carries certain risks. However, with the help of science and technology, it is possible to achieve high yield, high efficiency, and high quality in pig farming, with a good return on investment. Since the reform and opening-up, China's pig farming industry has achieved remarkable development worldwide. The number of pigs raised and pork production has continued to grow for 19 consecutive years, accounting for 44% of the global pig farming volume and over 38% of total pork production, making China the world leader in both pig farming and pork production. China's pig farming industry has shifted from a state of insufficient supply under planned economy to a market-regulated system with increasingly abundant products and growing demand and supply. Pork and its products have entered a buyer's market where supply slightly exceeds demand. By the late 2030s of the 21st century, China's population is expected to peak at 1.6 billion. At that time, people's living standards will have entered the moderately prosperous stage, and the supply of pork will become one of the focal points of public concern regarding social stability, economic development, and public health. To feed China's 1.6 billion population in the 21st century and to achieve a dietary structure and nutritional status comparable to that of middle-income developed countries, the structure of pig farming production needs to be adjusted, and both production volume and quality must undergo significant development.
Current Status of China's Pig Farming Industry
Significant Growth in Pig Inventory and Pork Production
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1, 1949, the Party and government have implemented a series of policies and measures to promote the development of pig farming, which quickly restored production in just three years. The total number of pigs raised nationwide reached 89.765 million, a 14.3% increase over the pre-founding figure of 78.53 million (in 1935), making China the world's largest pig farming country. Table 11 illustrates the dramatic changes in China's pig farming production from 1952 to 1997. The number of pigs raised increased by 5.21 times, the number of pigs slaughtered increased by 8.66 times, and pork production increased by 14.3 times, indicating not only growth in quantity but also improvements in production efficiency and the significant increase in the application of science and technology. Calculating based on the 40.37 million tons of pork production in 1996, the slaughter rate that year reached 119.2%, an increase of 30.34% over 1990 and 61.48% over 1975. In 1997, the slaughter rate reached 125.32%. Pork has always held the leading position in China's meat consumption. For example, in 1980, pork production was 11.341 million tons, accounting for 94.08% of the total meat production of 12.055 million tons from pigs, cattle, sheep, etc. By 1996, pork production had reached 40.37 million tons, accounting for 68.25% of the total meat production of 59.15 million tons. In 1996, pork production increased by 10.65% compared to the previous year. Although China's population has grown rapidly over the past 40 years, both the average number of pigs slaughtered per person and the social share of pork have increased significantly (Table 12). In 1996, the average number of pigs slaughtered per person reached 0.41, and pork consumption reached 32.3 kilograms, which were 2.05 times and 2.78 times higher than those in 1983, respectively. By 1997, pork consumption reached 34.79 kilograms.