Selection Indices used in Germany

To understand the different selection procedures used in Germany it is necessary to explain the structure of pig breeding and production. The commercial fattening pigs are either produced by traditional herdbook organisations or by commercial breeding companies. While in Bavaria 90 % of all fattening pigs are single crosses with Pietrain as sire and Landrace as dam, in the northern part of Germany about 90 % of all fattening pigs are threeor four-breed crosses with an F1 sow (Large White*Landrace) and a Pietrain or Hampshire*Pietrain crossbred terminal sire. The use of crossbred sows in Bavaria is increasing but still limited. The main reason is that the herdbook organisation in Bavaria is only serving about 30 % of the sow market while 70 % of replacement gilts are produced by the weaner producer themselves.