9 reasons Pig Farming could be good Business for you in Uganda
So why would you zero down on piggery and leave other domestic animals aside...?
Well, consider the points below so you can Know that you've made the right decision to start planning a Pig Farming Business:
- The pig has a high feed conversion efficiency and as such produces more live weight gain from a given weight of feed than any other class of meat producing animal, the big comes second only to the Broiler Chicken
- The Pig is able to utilize a wide variety of foodstuff like Grains, forages, and converts them into valuable nutritious meat. Feeding your pig on damaged grains and other leftovers reduce the stress of buying foodstuff and consequently you will spend less or no money on food, depending on the system you adopt.
- Pigs are comparatively very fertile having a short generation interval; a female pig/sow reaches maturity as early as 8-9 months when she can start breeding. In one year your pig can produce/farrow twice, producing 8-12 piglets each time.
- You will invest relatively small on Buildings and farm equipment when starting your pig Production Business.
- You will comparatively yield more meat from a pig than other animals in terms of dressing percentage; you could easily get 65-80 percent meat from a pig and yet with other livestock, your dressing yield would not exceed 65 percent.
- The pork itself is very nutritious meat with high fat and low water content and has got better energy value than that of other meats. The meat is rich in vitamins like thiamin, Niacin, and riboflavin. Your pig production business can thus be used to fight malnutrition a well.
- You can use the pig manure from your farm as a fertilizer for plants and fish ponds
- Pigs store fat rapidly for which there is an increasing demand from poultry feeds, soap, paints, and other chemical industries.
- Your pig farming business could provide quick returns since you can achieve the Marketable weight of fattening pigs within a period of 6-8 months.
- As I mentioned earlier, there is currently a good demand for Pig Farming products from both the domestic and export markets.
Identify the good Pig breeds for your commercial farm
Use this section to identify the breeds you will take to your commercial piggery unit.
Large white: You will identify this breed by its distinguished erect ears and a slightly dished face. The body is long with excellent hams and fine hair. This breed is very prolific with good mothering ability and can be used for pork and bacon production.
Landrace: You will identify this pig breed by its white color, dropping ears and a straight snout. Sows produce and rear litters of piglets with very good daily gain and high lean meat content ideal for pork and bacon.
Duroc: You will identify this pig breed by its golden brown to black color with a thick aubum coat and hard skin. Ears are relatively small and slightly dropping. Traditionally the Durocs have been used as terminal sires, characterized by quick growth, deep body, broad ham, and shoulder. The Duroc is good at looking after its young and as such is a good breed for outdoor piggery. This pig breed is very suitable for anything from light pock to heavy pig production.
Hampshire: Developed in the USA and now one of the world's most important pig breeds. Extensively used as the sire of crossbred pigs for pork and bacon production. A very prolific pig breed. Produces lean meat in abundance and comparatively produces more meat than Large White and Landrace breeds.
Combrough: Commonly imported from South Africa, grow fast, have considerably less fat and the females are great mothers who don't lose their babies. They feed babies well and have enough milk. Give birth to an average of 14 piglets, 3 times a year. Can be resistant to disease when managed well.
And now you know which breed to ask for next time you go to buy piglets for your farm!
You can make an order for pigs, pig products, farm supplies and advisory services here.
So which Pig Farming System should you deploy?
Depending on the amount of capital you can afford to invest on your pig farm; you will have to choose one of these three (3) Pig farming systems.
Free range/scavenging pig keeping: a less extensive system that would provide your household with an emergency fund to fall back to while supplying some little meat from time to time. This is the system you will deploy with little investment of time and money.
Semi-Intensive pig keeping: you will use this system when you want to keep your pigs in a house and pay good attention to health and feeding. Production is higher and the pigs are also marketed. This system is commonly used by medium scale pig farmers in Uganda.
Intensive pig keeping: you will deploy this system when you want to produce meat efficiently for the market and for profit, usually in large numbers. You will have to invest significant time and money and carefully calculate your costs and resulting benefits. Be ready to invest in modern housing and on pig requirements for health and feeding.
Further to the above pig farming systems, you have to decide on a Pig Production System strategy.
Farrow to Wean: here you keep a parent stock of pigs and which give birth to piglets. Once the piglets are born, you rare them up to weaning and sell to growers and fatteners. You sell piglets only.
Farrow to Finish: here you raise piglets, wean them, grow them and fatten them in one unit. You sell pork and live pigs to slaughterhouses. Adopt this strategy if you have no market for piglets in your locality.
Fattening: Here you do not keep any parents on your farm. You continuously buy piglets and grow them for pork.
How to work around the business numbers for your Piggery Unit
Just like any other business, you have to plan before you seek to start up your pig farm business. Whereas today we have increasing markets and prices for pig and pig products, we're increasingly facing high costs of production that could eat into your profits if we do not carefully plan for these costs.
No matter what system of production you choose to adopt, commercial pig production is highly profitable if proper husbandry is followed.
The following assumptions will help you project your business profitability as an average farmer:
- a Piglet at 2 months, average weight 12Kg
- Pig Average Weight Gain (ADG) per day is 0.607Kg
- Breeding pigs are capable of producing 2 litters per year
- Based on a service/gestation/farrowing/weaning/recovery cycle of 183 Days, each female pig could produce 20 piglets per year.
Factors that will affect your Pig Farm Profitability
Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR): or Feed Conversion Efficiency (FCE): is the measure of a pig's efficiency in converting feed mass into increased body mass. Specifically, FCR is the mass of the food eaten divided by the body mass gain, all over a specified period. Animal breeds with low FCR are considered efficient users of feed.
Average Daily Gain (ADG): is a significant factor in assessing growth rates in most food animal species. Your aim is that you keep a pig that grows faster so that you can achieve market weights in the shortest period of time using the least amount of input/cost so that you receive the highest profit. In pig production, the most cost-efficient feed conversion and the highest average daily gain are the primary factors determining the efficiency of production.
Health: poor health will up the feed conversion ratio and reduce the average daily gain. Diseases like African Swine Fever (ASF) can wipe away all your pigs and cause a massive loss.
Genetics: The current market demands leaner carcasses, so you should strive to produce leaner pigs, animals with a high growth rate, larger litter size, high heritability, and low conversion ratio. All these are directly influenced by genetics.
Reproduction: a poor selection of the breeding stock and choice of a boar or artificial inseminate will directly affect your pig farming business profits.
For the case of Uganda, pig production has become increasingly important; evidenced by the change in pig population from 0.19 to 3.2 million. In 2011, Uganda had the highest per capita consumption of pork in sub-Saharan Africa at 3.4kg/person/year.
We have many butchers, restaurants, hotels, and supermarkets establishing today with pork on their menu both in Urban and rural areas. Pork is a delicacy to many Ugandans and largely considered social meat that cannot miss on several parties organized by non- Muslim communities. Pork joints have also become meeting places for groups of people who want to eat meat. Unlike other meats, many pork consumers in Uganda prefer eating close to a kilogram of pork each time they meat at pork joint!
Costs: Items you will have to spend money on, when establishing your Pig Farming Business
Fixed Costs: you will incur these before you start any production. They remain the same irrespective of any production increases or decreases and include: Building costs, Purchase/construction of feed troughs, Purchases or replacement of breeding stock, and Purchase of land.
Variable Costs: costs that will change in proportion to your production levels including Veterinary costs, stationery, transport, Maintenace of facilities, Marketing costs, wages and salaries, and losses due to mortalities.
Income: The sources from which your business expects money to come from will also affect your profits. Your Pig Farming Business could expect to make money from the sale of Weaners, Porkers and baconers, cull boars and sows, breeding boars and sows ,as well as the sale of Manure.
Profits: This is the difference between your costs and income. The costs should include labor and any possible risk in your business. The most expensive input in pig production is feeding because it consumes between 60 to 80% of the total production costs. You have to implement strategies that will reduce the input costs in your business.
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