1. science
2. medicine
3. surgery

BRIEFING
MOVING TO ALTERNATIVES TO THE
SURGICAL CASTRATION OF PIGS
BACKGROUND
Male pigs are castrated for two main reasons: to prevent the risk of boar taint, an
unpleasant flavour and smell which can be detected when the meat is cooked, and
to minimise sexual aggressive behaviour. To this day, surgical castration of pigs in
the EU can still be lawfully performed without anaesthetics if carried out within the
7th day of life of the piglet.
At least until 2010, it was estimated that about 100 million male pigs were routinely
surgically castrated in the EU every year, in most cases by farmers using neither
anaesthesia nor analgesia. This is primarily an animal welfare problem, as surgical
castration is painful for the piglets; however, it is also a public health issue, as antibiotics
are routinely used to minimize the risk of infection, whereas antibiotic use in livestock farming should be
reduced.
To address these concerns, in 2010 the European Commission, with the support of the Belgian presidency of
the Council of the European Union, established the “European Declaration on alternatives
alternatives to surgical castration
of pigs”. The Declaration is a voluntary commitment signed by 33 stakeholders of the pork chain (farmers,
veterinarians, meat industry, NGOs, governmental bodies, researchers, etc.) to abandon surgical castration by 1
January 2018. As a first step, as of 1 January 2012 all pigs still undergoing surgical castration should have been
provided with anaesthesia and/or prolonged analgesia. The European Commission allocated substantial funding
for research projects to fulfil the conditions necessary to the transition and has been supporting and monitoring
the process by hosting and organising relevant events and meetings, and creating expert platforms.
THE FIRST PROGRESS REPORT: WORRYING SIGNS
The first Progress Report on the work of the signatories of the European Declaration was distributed during the
Workshop organized by DG SANTE in February 2015. During the workshop, the results of the first four years of
activity were presented, and researchers, farmers, veterinarians, retailers, NGOs and other stakeholders of the
pig sector presented their experiences with alternatives to surgical castration. From an analysis of the foreseen
actions and the current progress, the following critical points emerged:
1. The first milestone of 2012 has been missed.
missed Only some countries have taken steps to ensure that piglets
undergoing surgical castration receive anaesthesia and/or prolonged analgesia, and the methods are not
mutually recognised.
2. The percentage of meat from boars on the market varies substantially by country.
country It is high in the UK, Ireland,
Spain and Portugal (countries raising primarily lighter pigs that do not require castration) as well as Belgium
and the Netherlands, but it is low in all other countries.
3. An agreement on a common understanding of boar taint within the EU and for export markets has not yet
been reached and will require a coordinated scientific action across countries.
4. Training and communication towards farmers and other actors of the pork chain – two crucial activities to
Briefing on: Piglet Castration
April 2015
dispel some of the myths still existing and circulating on raising entire or vaccinated pigs – are still in their
initial phase.
phase
TWO ALTERNATIVES ARE AVAILABLE
Rearing of entire males
Rearing of entire males (boars) and detection of boar taint at the slaughter line is the first viable option, and the
one preferred by animal welfare NGOs. Some member states (NL, BE, UK, IRL, SP among others) have a lot of
experience with raising and marketing boars, and many big slaughterhouses have been successfully using the
human nose detection method at the slaughter line for years. The prevalence of boar taint currently reported by
the major EU slaughterhouses varies between 1 and 5%, and tainted meat is used to make processed products.
The main obstacle to real progress in this direction is the absence of a harmonized internal market for boar
meat.
Vaccination against boar taint
A vaccine against boar taint was authorised by the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) in 2009. Vaccinated
animals have the same characteristics as castrated animals but with better feed conversion rates and a lower
environmental footprint. Research is ongoing regarding consumer and market acceptance of meat from pigs
vaccinated against boar taint. However, this type of meat is already present in the supermarkets of some EU and
overseas countries, so there is expertise that can be shared and built upon.
A GOOD TIME TO TAKE ACTION
Eurogroup for Animals considers the phasing out of surgical piglet castration as one of its priorities. We intend
to continue cooperating with other stakeholders and with DG SANTE towards the objectives of the European
Declaration. However, we are also very concerned about the current state of play and we call for a series of strong
actions.
WHAT WE INTEND
INTEND TO DO:
• Contribute to defining a clear action plan 2015-2018 to reach the goals of the European Declaration on
alternatives to surgical castration of pigs
• Stimulate retailers to take on a stronger role in driving change, following existing examples in several
Member States
• Ask the European Commission and the signatories of the Declaration to allocate resources for training and
dissemination of good practices at Member State level
• Ask the European Commission and the signatories of the Declaration to allocate resources to build up a
knowledge base of the research results, to be made available through a dedicated website and through
targeted publications
CONTACT
Elena Nalon, DVM
Project Leader – Farm Animals | Eurogroup for Animals
Email [email protected]
Tel: +32 (0)2 740 08 97
Rue des Patriotes 6, B-1000 Brussels
Briefing on: Piglet Castration
April 2015