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In Holland three times as many pigs are kept as needed
for national consumption. The rest is exported.
The following table gives some core figures on intensive
and biological pig farming in Holland. The first column
shows aspects, for instance how much meat the average
Dutchman eats. The second column, headed "1999",
shows the average meat-consumption in 1999 (88 kg).
The third column calculates the required amount of meat
in kg for all of Holland. Comments and clarifications
are in the last column.
With this table we are trying to make clear what
would happen if all intensive cattle farmers would
switch to biological farm-management aimed at
the national market. Apart from consequences in
business economics, it would also imply a greater
use of space inside and outside stables. Maximum
welfare improvement would amount to 30% higher
costs, which is an amount somewhere between 1
and 50 euro per pig (Dr. M. den Ouden, Wageningen).
The table calculates the required number of biological
pig farmers, assuming that consumption of pork in Holland
would remain the same, despite expected higher meat
prices. There are some extra rows that provide information
that may not be essential to the calculations, but that
may provide interesting information. The arrows in the
left column point out essential information.
From this table, you can deduce that the modal Dutchman
consumes about half a pig per year, which can be used
in turn to calculate how many biological pig farmers
would be needed to produce this meat (given the average
number of pigs per farm).
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Figures from
PVE and CBS |
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required in Holland
for national consumption of pork |
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year |
1999
|
total
yearly |
remarks |
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kg meat
per capita available |
88 |
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including veal and poultry
etc. |
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average
gross consumption pork p.p. in kg |
43 |
645.000.000 |
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average net consumption
meat p.p. in kg |
40 |
600.000.000 |
excluding fatty rims and bones |
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meat
price paid up front by government (taxpayer) (30%
on top of 4 euro per kg) |
70 |
1.800.000.000 |
this is more than
50k Euro per pig farm |
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permanently kept
no. of meat pigs in Holland (max. 4 months) |
6.774.085 |
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stables are cleared (slaughter)
3x per year |
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no. of meat pigs
kept yearly in Holland |
20.322.255 |
7.371.321 |
one third is consumed in Holland |
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number of biological
pig farms |
36 |
15.751 |
more small businesses |
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number of factory
meat pig farms |
14.662 |
5.318 |
after export ban and without
switch |
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average no. of
meat pigs per factory pig farm |
462 |
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average of a number of large
and a lot of small businesses |
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average
no. of pigs per biological pig farm (max 6 months) |
234 |
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average of a number
of large and a lot of small businesses |
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max.
no. of biological pigs in pasture per hectare |
27 |
10 |
hectare free roaming
space for an average biological farm |
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outside space
for biological pigs in hectares |
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157.510 |
approx. the surface of the
province of Utrecht |
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gross production
no. of biological meat pigs |
23.000 |
7.371.321 |
with equal slaughter weight
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gross annual
production of pigs in factory farming |
23.470.000 |
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incl. sows etc. |
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exported alive |
4.423.000 * |
0 |
* Animal
Freedom is against this |
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imported alive |
507.000 * |
0 |
* Animal
Freedom is against this |
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annual no. of
slaughters |
19.554.000 * |
7.371.321 |
* two
thirds is exported |
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slaughter weight
pigs in kg |
110 |
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production in
kg |
1.711.000.000 |
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quantity
of meat per pig in kg |
87.5 |
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actual consumable
kg per pig |
70 |
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without heads and after boning |
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These figures show that if Holland were to switch from
intensive cattle farming to biological pig farms for
the purpose of only covering national requirements in
pork, the number of businesses can remain almost the
same if the following conditions are met: no
export of pork, fewer meat pigs per stable, and
letting pigs live one and a half times as long as now.
The quantity of manure would be halved.
One barrier in this switch is formed by the huge
investments factory farmers have made: a debt
of 500,000 euro is fairly normal. Also, international
agreements on free export make it hard to impose
import and export restrictions. Almost none of
the factory farmers have their own land to grow
fodder or to spread manure on. If they want to
switch, they will have to lease, rent or buy extra
farmlands.
In view of the seriousness of the consequences of farm-management
for animals in exporting countries we think it worthwhile
to intervene in
the proposed manner: where there's a will, there's a
way.
When consumers pay reasonable prices for meat, meat
consumption will decrease and fewer meat producers will
be necessary. In exchange, consumers will no longer
pay through taxes for keeping an unjust branch afloat.
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