EU: Pig population slightly declining, sow numbers stabilizing
In total, around 131.5 million pigs were kept in the EU in autumn/winter 2025. This was 0.5% less than the previous year. The population trends among the major producing countries varied last year.
In Germany, the pig population increased by 0.9% to 21.49 million animals. Denmark recorded a significantly larger increase of 6.0%, reaching 12.27 million pigs. Poland increased its population by 1.6% to 9.23 million animals, while Italy saw a 0.6% rise to 7.87 million animals. Further increases were recorded in Portugal (+2.6%) and Romania (+2.4%).
In contrast, several countries reported declining pig numbers. The decrease in Spain is particularly significant, where the number of pigs fell by 2.7% to 33.65 million animals. Nevertheless, Spain remains by far the largest pig producer in the EU. In the Netherlands, the reduction in pig numbers continued, primarily due to the Dutch government's buyback program; there, 9.42 million pigs were counted, 7.6% fewer than in the previous year.
The market is likely to closely monitor developments in the sow population. After significant reductions in breeding stock numbers in many member states in recent years, the latest survey indicates a stabilization. According to the latest figures, 10.27 million sows were kept in the European Union; this represents a 0.6% increase compared to the previous year. However, trends continue to vary considerably between individual countries.
The slight increase was primarily due to larger herds in several key producing countries. Spain increased its sow population by 2.6% to 2.68 million animals. Germany recorded a rise of 1.4% to 1.42 million sows. Denmark also significantly increased its sow population, reaching 1.19 million sows, a growth of 2.7%. Poland (+3.1%), Romania (+2.6%), Hungary (+4.8%), and Ireland (+11.8%) also reported rising sow numbers.
In other member states, however, the decline continued. In France, the sow population fell by 2.5% to 816,000 animals. The Netherlands also saw a significant decrease compared to the previous year, with 744,000 sows, a drop of 7.1%. Given the overall stable sow numbers, pig slaughtering in the EU is expected to remain at a similar or slightly increasing level compared to the previous year for the remainder of the year.
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