Quality pork supply in sight with arrival of French breeding pigs

The first installment of French breeding pigs arrived in Wuhan on Wednesday, Wuhan Evening News reported.

Airport staff unloading 658 French breeding pigs on December 6, 2017. [Photo: Weibo.com]

The 658 pigs were part of those imported by a livestock company in Xiangyang, Hubei Province. The head of the company said these pigs have larger bodies, their offspring characteristically grows fast, and their meat is of good quality. This breed of pig has been particularly popular on the Chinese market.

The company has ordered a total of 1,200 French breeding pigs which will arrive in Wuhan successively.

To ensure their health, the pigs were transported in the main cargo area of aircraft which has better oxygen supply.

Two French breeding pigs are in the cargo tank of the China Southern Airlines flight on December 6, 2017. [Photo: Weibo.com]

The pigs were quarantined twice before leaving France and will be placed in the breeding farm after a series of strict disinfection measures upon landing in China. They will be allowed mating after a 45-day isolation period.

Hubei is one of China's major pig raising regions. In 2008, a five-year pig raising project involving 1.36 billion U.S. dollars in investment was launched in the central China province. According to Xinhua News Agency, the project brought in an additional income of nearly 280 million U.S. dollars for local farmers.