Pork-Oriented Productivity: What Is It?

Pork-oriented productivity is a philosophy that emphasizes working smarter, making every minute count, and optimizing your work. In 2023, global pork production was led by China, which produced over 55 million metric tons of pork. The European Union and the United States held the second and third positions, respectively. The pork industry generates significant economy activity through its purchase of inputs, such as feed inputs like corn and soybean meal, which account for an estimated 52% of total U.S. production costs.

The National Pork Board initiated the Production Benchmarking Analysis to make data publicly available for pork producers to use when assessing productivity in various aspects. Pork-oriented productivity is about working smarter, not harder, and focuses on prioritizing tasks and mastering time. The results can be traced to the LDP’s unresolved internal tensions between its productivity-oriented and pork-oriented approach.

The process of pork processing includes three key macro-steps: slaughtering, meat cutting, and further processing. The overall goals for sow productivity are a program that maximizes the number of pigs per litter, optimizes pig birth weight, and maximizes the overall productivity of the sow herd. This production analysis aims to aid the pork industry in improving efficiency through an analysis of anonymous production data.

Danish pork producers focus on sow herd productivity, labor efficiency, and cost of production, with the key to profit being in the sow herd. By making production systems and practices more sustainable, more pork is eaten globally, benefiting animals, the planet, and people.