The European Union produced a provisional 20.6 million tonnes of pig meat in 2023, according to a recent market report from the European Commission. 

This was 2.8 million tonnes less than the peak level in 2021, the equivalent of an 11.8% decline. It was also the lowest level of production during the 15 year period under review.

The two main pig meat producing countries in the EU are Spain (4.9 million tonnes in 2023) and Germany (4.2 million tonnes). 

After eight successive years of growth in Spain, pig meat production declined moderately in 2022 (-2.2%) and 2023 (-3.9%). 

Pig meat production in Germany declined for a seventh consecutive year and at a relatively sharp rate (-6.3% in 2023, following on from -9.6% in 2022). 

There were also lower pig meat production levels in 2023 among all the other main EU producer countries, with the strongest rates of decline being in the Netherlands (-13.1%) and Denmark (-19.9%).