China: Aim to reduce sow numbers by 1 million

China’s pig industry is planning to reduce breeding sow numbers by a million in an attempt to deal with oversupply and stabilise prices.

News agency Bloomberg reported that China is urging its top pig farmers to reduce their breeding sow herds by about 2%.

Official data shows China’s sow herd hit 40.43 million head at the end of June 2025. The amount is partially a result of policies in recent years to accelerate swine production. Prices paid for finisher pigs dropped below RMB 14 early August 2025. A year earlier, it was around RMB 20.

A notice of the China Animal Agriculture Association (CAAA) also pointed to a meeting of the Chinese pig industry this month, which aims to figure out how to reduce the breeding herd. In addition, the meeting intends to focus on curbing “secondary fattening” – a speculative practice of further finishing pigs in anticipation of higher prices, as well as tightening controls on slaughter weights, according to the notice from the China Animal Agriculture Association (CAAA), the official animal husbandry association.

The news is in line with earlier reports this summer, when Chinese ministry of agriculture and rural affairs (MARA) said the country would reduce breeding sow stocks, control slaughter weights and limit new production capacity. These efforts are also expected to reduce soymeal consumption, as China contends with ongoing trade tensions with the United States and concerns over potential soybean supply disruptions later in 2025.

Tags: China, Production, pig industry, herds, breeding sow