Pig production processed and marketed on-farm; part one : technical characteristics of the pig-farms

This work corresponds to a clarification of a typology of the pig-farms processing and marketing their pigs on farm and in theevaluation of their profitability in 2007. The objective is to analyze the most important criteria during the installation or the increase, which allow to estimate the processing plant and on-farm sales. Farms accepting the inquiry were selected in different regions (Brittany, Rhône-Alpes, Bourgogne, Auvergne, Midi-Pyrénées). The typology of the investigated farms and the calculation of profitability were treated. To characterize the activity (production / process / sale), the best indicator is the % of processed pigs. 3 main groups were identified: farms processing less than 50 % of their pig production ("breeders "), those processing over 75 % ("pork butchers ") 62 % of the sample and those processing between 50 % and 75 % of their pigs ("go-between").