2025 report card for Korean pork farms released… MSY stagnates at 18.9 head as gap between top and bottom farms widens

It was found that the production performance of Korean pork farms last year remained at a level similar to the previous year. Although the total number of piglets born increased slightly due to the introduction of highly prolific sows, the post-weaning growth rate failed to support it, so MSY, the actual number of pigs shipped, continues to remain flat. In particular, the productivity gap between top-performing and lower-performing farms is widening over time, prompting calls for urgent, detailed management measures targeting lower-tier farms.

▲Number of pigs shipped (MSY) stuck at 18.9 head =According to the recently published “2025 Handon Farms Nationwide Computerized Performance Analysis of Korean Pork Farms” by the Korea Pork Producers Association (Chairman Lee Ki-hong) and the Handon Research Institute, the average MSY (annual marketed pigs per sow) of general-user farms last year was 18.9 head. This was the same as in 2024, showing that pig farm productivity still has not broken through the 19-head barrier and remains in a stagnant phase.

By region, South Gyeongsang recorded the highest productivity at 19.4 head, followed by South Jeolla at 19.1 head, and Gangwon and South Chungcheong at 19.0 head. In contrast, Jeju recorded the lowest result nationwide at 18.1 head.

▲“What’s the use of giving birth to many?”… improving growth rate remains a task=A positive point is that the total number born per litter, a reproductive indicator, has been improving every year. In 2025, the average total number born was 11.73 head, up 0.14 head from the previous year (11.59 head). The share of farms with 12 or more total piglets born even reached 44.5%, continuing an annual upward trend.

However, the problem lies in “how well the piglets that are born are raised.” The pre-weaning survival rate fell 0.3% from the previous year to 89.1%, and the post-weaning growth rate also remained at 84.3%, down 0.8% from the previous year (85.1%). It appears that even when many piglets are born, many die due to disease or inadequate feeding and management, preventing them from reaching actual shipment.

▲Gap between top and bottom farms is stark… customized support is urgently needed =The most striking point in this survey is the severe polarization between the upper and lower groups. Based on MSY among professional users, the top 10% of farms shipped an average of 23.8 head, while the bottom 10% remained at 12.8 head, about half that level.

Compared with 2020 in particular, this gap is even more painful. Over the past five years, the MSY of the top 30% group increased by 1.4 head, while that of the bottom 30% group actually decreased by 0.6 head. Top farms are improving performance through data-based precision management, while lower-tier farms are still struggling to overcome disease and environmental changes.

▲“We must overcome the crisis through data-based precision management”=In his greeting, Chairman Lee Ki-hong said, “I am grateful to the farms that recorded data despite difficult conditions such as the spread of ASF early this year,” and emphasized, “Now is an era in which scientific responses based on data, rather than reliance on experience, are essential.”

In fact, higher-performing farms tended to have greater feed intake and shorter shipping age. The average shipping age of the top 10% farms was analyzed at 178 days, nearly two months faster than the bottom 10% farms at 236 days.

Experts cite improving the post-weaning growth rate as the top priority for the sustainability of the Korean pork industry. In addition, it appears that customized technical guidance from the government and the industry should be strengthened so that lower-tier farms facing aging and labor shortages can recover productivity through the use of ICT equipment and computerized data management.