Germany 2025: the pig census grows by 2.8%, but the number of farms drops by 40% in ten years

German pig farming continues to show in 2025 an evolution marked by two simultaneous and, in part, contradictory dynamics: on the one hand, the moderate increase in the number of animals in certain species; on the other, a constant and deep reduction in the number of farms. The press release says that this phenomenon is especially visible in the pig sector, where production concentration is consolidating as a long-term structural trend. According to the preliminary results of the livestock census published by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), as of November 3, 2025, there were 21.5 million pigs in Germany distributed across 15,220 farms. This figure represents a significant increase of 2.8% compared to the previous census in May 2025, equivalent to 575,800 more animals, and an annual increase of 0.9% (+196,300 animals) compared to November 2024. However, this growth in the animal census has not translated into an increase in the number of farms. On the contrary, the press ...