GERMANY

Germany: Pig population in Lower Saxony has remained stable

Pork

The first preliminary results of the livestock census from Lower Saxony, dated November 3, 2025, are now available. According to these figures, the number of pig farms has continued to decline. However, the number of pigs in the population has remained stable.

Posted on Dec 16 ,00:05

Lower Saxony was the first German state to release results from the livestock census of November 3, 2025: According to preliminary figures from the Lower Saxony State Statistical Office, 7.14 million pigs were kept there on that date. This was approximately 95,000 pigs, or about 1.3%, more than in November 2024. This indicates a stabilization of the livestock numbers since 2023; previously, there had been some very significant declines.

However, the downward trend in the number of farms continues: On November 3, 2025, there were still 3,820 farms in Lower Saxony keeping at least 50 pigs. Compared to the previous year, this was 90 fewer, or a decrease of 2.3%. Over the past ten years, the total number of pig farms in Lower Saxony has decreased by 42.1%.

The figures developed very differently in the individual animal categories. The number of fattening pigs was down 0.8% to 4.87 million compared to the previous year. The number of piglets, at 1.89 million, was 6.7% higher than a year ago. The number of breeding sows increased by 6.1% to 380,700 animals.

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