Traditional black pig farming is more profitable, farmers raising pigs beats large-scale pig farms
How do farmers benefit from the pig farming industry? A reporter's investigation found that as the pig farming industry continues to grow, the ways farmers increase their income from pig farming are becoming increasingly diverse, and they can still share in the fruits of the pig farming industry's development.
Xinchao Village in Jiaji Town, Qionghai City is a specialized pig farming village. A recent visit by a reporter found that farmers here raise traditional black pigs, and the profit per pig is higher than that of large-scale pig farms.
An old man surnamed Wang in the village has raised black pigs for many years, marketing more than 30 black pigs annually. In the first half of this year, he marketed 15 black pigs, earning more than 1,100 yuan per pig. He told the Hainan Daily reporter that he rarely buys feed for his pigs; he gets up early and stays out late every day to collect leftover food and scraps from regular restaurants in Jiaji Town, and after high-temperature sterilization at home, uses it as pig feed. The black pigs he raises are plump and strong, and are especially popular with the locals.
“People in Qionghai don't like the lean-type white pork from large-scale pig farms; everyone still prefers traditional black pork. Because household pig farming has declined, black pig farming is becoming rarer and rarer, and the price has always been higher than that of white pigs.” Old Wang told the reporter that white pigs now cost about 9.5 yuan per jin, while black pigs cost more than 10 yuan per jin, and still demand exceeds supply. He still has 17 black pigs in his pen, and even before they are ready for market, pig dealers have already set their sights on them. “In a few more months, these 17 black pigs will sell for more than 30,000 yuan.”
Besides making money from raising pigs themselves, farmers can also earn a considerable income by working at large-scale pig farms. Chen Tao and Xing Huayan are a married couple who are farmers from Dongjiao Town, Wenchang City, and they both work at the Chia Tai pig farm in Wenchang City. Chen Tao is a pig farm stockman, with room and board included and a fixed monthly wage of 1,800 yuan, plus a performance bonus of 200 yuan to 600 yuan after the pigs he raises are marketed. Xing Huayan is a pig farm purchaser, with room and board included and a fixed monthly wage of 1,500 yuan. Xing Huayan said that working at the pig farm involves no major expenses, and the two of them earn about 50,000 yuan a year. Although it is not a lot of money, it is very stable.
Zhou Xiaohong, director of the Animal Husbandry Division of the Provincial Department of Agriculture, said that when farmers raise pigs using traditional methods, the scale is small, their ability to prevent disease is poor, and their ability to withstand market risks is weak, so making money is not easy. As pig farming moves toward industrialization, farmers raising pigs themselves is only one way to increase income, and earning income from the pig farming industrialization process through other channels will become increasingly common.