Total litter recordings for all eight breeds in the National Association of Swine Records (NASR) reported a 4.2% increase in 2010, compared to the previous year. The eight breeds include Berkshire, Chester White, Duroc, Hampshire, Landrace, Poland China, Spotted and Yorkshire.
The increase marks the first time in five years that the eight breeds accumulatively have reflected an increase. The Berkshire breed led the pack with a 37% surge over litters recorded in 2009.
Accumulative litter recordings for the National Swine Registry (NSR), which represents Duroc, Hampshire, Landrace and Yorkshire breeds, reported a total of 27,712 litters recorded. Duroc and Landrace litter registrations were up significantly, with Landrace leading the NSR group with a 10% increase over 2009.
Darrell Anderson, NSR CEO, says, "This improvement halts a trend of slight decreases over the past several years, and is a positive sign for the purebred swine industry and our member-based organization."
Although down slightly compared to 2009, the Yorkshire breed remains number one in total recordings with 11,846 litters cataloged in 2010. Yorkshire registrations have shown tenacity over time, dropping by only 522 litters since 1999 registrations.