2023 UK pig meat production plummets to five-year low
The volume of pigmeat produced in the UK in 2023 plummeted by 11% to a five-year low, as slaughtering declined by 10% to the lowest figure in a decade.
The latest Defra slaughter statistics showed the UK produced 71,900 tonnes of pigmeat in December, a massive 18% decline of 14,300t compared with December 2022. This was on the back of a 17% decline in clean pig slaughter numbers to 781,800 head, representing a loss of over 177,000 head from December 2022, despite reported efforts to pull pigs forwards ahead of Christmas.
The December slaughtering deficit contrasted with much smaller year-on-year declines for November (910,000) and October (887,000) of 5% and 10% respectively. “Adverse wet weather conditions caused flooding and wider disruption during the month and may have had an impact on throughputs,” said AHDB senior analyst Freya Shuttleworth.
The December pig production figure meant that for the full year of 2023, the UK produced 927,400t of pig meat, an 11% year on year decline and the lowest annual volume recorded since 2018.
The predominant driver was a sharp fall in the number of pigs slaughtered. The 2023 clean pig kill fell by 10% year on year to 10.06 million head, a loss of more than 1.1m head and the lowest annual clean pig kill in a decade.
By Alistair Driver | Pig World
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