Scottish agricultural survey: December 2017

7. Pigs

Year-on-year comparisons between 2016 and 2017 December Survey results show:

• A drop in the total number of pigs of 22,600 (six per cent), down to 345,100. This was larger than the 1.3 per cent annual increase reported in the 2017 June Census results. The figure is three per cent below the ten year average of 354,800.
• A reduction in breeding pigs of 6,400 (17 per cent) to 31,400 - contrasting with the eight per cent annual increase reported in the 2017 June Census. The figure is six per cent lower than the ten year average of 33,200.

Chart 8 shows trends over the past ten years for breeding pigs from the December Survey and June Census. After several years of decline, breeding pig figures in June have been increasing slowly. The drop in this December's figure brings it more in line with the June figure.

Chart 8: Breeding pigs, June and December 2007 to 2017