Variation and trends for weight of individual carcase cuts

In France more than 25 million pigs were slaughtered in 2007. Most of the pigs are a three-breed cross with Pietrain boars or synthetic sire lines mated to crossbred sows (mainly Large White cross Landrace). The classification of pig carcases is based on one or two fat depth and one muscle depth measurements to estimate the total lean meat percentage of the four main cuts. More than 90% of carcases are classified with the manual probe CGM (Meagre Grease Captor – reflectance measurements). In comparison, approximately 5 million pigs are slaughtered each year in Australia. The Australian payment system is based on carcase weight and P2 fat depth.