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Brazil's pig inventory grows 4.3% and reaches new record

The southern region has been the leader in production since the beginning of the historical series in 1974.

Once again, the national pig herd reached a record 44.4 million head, after a growth of 4.3% compared to the previous edition of the survey.

Despite the difficulties faced by the industry, especially with high production costs, the growth in the number of sows and pigs, as well as in pig slaughter (a record in 2022), continued to be driven by pork exports, which reached the second best result in the series in 2022. China continues to be the main destination, but with a smaller share of the total volume exported, according to Secex data. Domestic consumption also continued to grow (7.8%), reaching 18 kilos per capita.

The three main federative units in terms of livestock are those that make up the Southern Region, so in terms of pig farming, this region is the leader among the Major Regions, a position it has held since the beginning of the survey series, and in 2022 it was responsible for 51.9% of the total number of animals. Santa Catarina leads with 22.1% of the national herd, which is equivalent to 9.8 million head, followed by Paraná with 15.8%, and Rio Grande do Sul with 13.9%. Not coincidentally, these are also the states, in the same order, with the highest number of pigs slaughtered in the country.

In fourth place is Minas Gerais (12.7%) and Mato Grosso in fifth (6.6%) - and the Southeast and Midwest appear to be the next largest production regions after the South, with 16.6% and 14.1% of the total, respectively.

Toledo (Paraná) once again had the largest municipal herd, followed by Uberlândia (Minas Gerais), Marechal Cândido Rondon (Paraná), Tapurah (Mato Grosso), and Concórdia (Santa Catarina) rounding off the list of the top five municipalities, which together account for 3.1 million animals.