Defra statistics released today show the number of pigs in the UK has fallen 1.3 per cent in the past year. The total number of pigs in the UK fell to 4.3 million between December 2010 and December 2011.

The current level is lowest for the British pig herd since 1992. The number of breeding pigs in the UK fell to 500,000 animals over the same period.

The English pig herd fell by 0.7 per cent, comprising 3.5 million pigs by December 2011. However, the numbers of breeding and fattening pigs in England remained constant, suggesting farmers may be biding their time in order to observe market developments over the coming months.    

Following a modest increase in December 2010, the Welsh pig herd decreased by four per cent over the period. Overall in Wales, the pig herd has halved in number since 2000, falling from 65,000 to around 26,000.

According to analysts, the declines seen in pig herds are due to economic factors; cheaper meat from other EU countries is rendering production in Britain unviable for smaller producers. Last week, the European Commission announced that meat production in the bloc is set to decrease by 1.1 per cent in 2012, and fall again in 2013, on declining consumption.

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