The Dutch organic pig sector is keen to put an end to the castration of boar piglets as soon as possible. The developments surrounding castration in the conventional pig-farming sector accelerated after the signing of the Declaration of Noordwijk (verklaring van Noordwijk) in 2007. In light of the sales risks inherent in organic boars’ meat, according to LEI Wageningen UR researchers, it is advisable to link up with the conventional pig-farming sector when looking for technological developments to prevent boar taint and in order to gain trade and consumer acceptance of boars’ meat in Germany and elsewhere.
Researchers at LEI Wageningen UR came to this conclusion on the basis of an opinion poll among meat-processing companies and retail organisations in Germany and the United Kingdom, the two most important export countries for Dutch organic meat.
In the UK, organic livestock farming has been accustomed to non-castration for several years, but pigs are younger and lighter at slaughter. If customers in the UK market are aware that organic import meat comes from castrated animals, this could create problems in sales. For the time being, British retailers seem to prefer the use of pain relief during castration to non-castration.
In the German market, the risks for sales of organic boars’ meat are so great at present that more support needs to be created within the chain and among German scientists and politicians before the full abolition of castration is feasible. It would be advisable for the organic pig sector to link up with the conventional pig-farming sector when looking for technological developments to prevent boar taint, not only by detecting boar taint on the slaughter line but also through diet and housing solutions, for example. Additionally, boar taint in organic pork can be reduced by means of natural selection.
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