Nghe An: Sow herd decreased by more than 13,000, herd restoration facing difficulties
(Baonghean.vn) - Compared to before the outbreak of African swine fever, the number of sows in Nghe An has decreased significantly, leading to a shortage of breeding pigs, affecting people's herd restoration.
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| Sows in Nghe An have been in short supply due to African swine fever since the beginning of 2019. Photo: Xuan Hoang |
According to the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, as of May 2020, Nghe An had 901,000 pigs. Of which, the sow herd had 163,973 pigs (110,000 sows raised by households, 53,725 on farms). Compared to the time when Nghe An had not yet had African swine fever (early 2019), the sow herd decreased by 13,023 pigs, mainly due to having to be destroyed due to swine fever infection.
Some localities have many sows destroyed: Nhan Thanh, Phuc Thanh (Yen Thanh); Quynh Thanh, Quynh Bang, Quynh My (Quynh Luu); Dien Quang, Dien Van, Dien Kim... (Dien Chau); Minh Son, Quang Son (Do Luong)...
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| Large-scale pig farms and businesses mainly raise sows to create breeding stock on site. Photo: Xuan Hoang |
Due to the shortage of sows at the same time, the price of piglets increased, affecting the focus on herd restoration and herd increase to contribute to stabilizing pork prices in the recent past. Currently, the price of piglets ranges from 1.4 - 1.7 million VND/head; super lean pigs from 2.5 - 3 million VND/head. The price of live pigs in Nghe An is still "stuck" at a high level, from 84,000 - 87,000 VND/kg.
Mr. Ngo Duc Quynh - Deputy Head of Nghe An Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department said that to restore the sow herd, farmers can initially use commercial F1 pigs as breeding stock.
According to data from the Nghe An Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, as of May 10, there were 8 communes in the province that had not passed 30 days of the epidemic in 2 districts: Yen Thanh (4 communes) and Thanh Chuong (4 communes). The Provincial People's Committee supported people whose pigs were destroyed due to the epidemic in 2019 with 138 billion VND.