Luquan Sabap Pig

Luquan Sabap Pig

The Luquan Sabap Pig is a geographical indication certification trademark.

The Luquan Sabap Pig is a geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Before liberation, there were basically no highways in Luquan County, with high mountains and deep valleys, and limited interaction among different ethnic groups. In many areas, pigs were inadvertently or intentionally bred through inbreeding and closed-herd selection methods. Over centuries of natural selection, their physical appearance, production performance, and environmental adaptability gradually became consistent, naturally forming an excellent local breed—the Sabap Pig. Due to the complex and diverse natural geography of the region, differences in climate, feed, and management practices across areas, as well as varying breeding objectives, production requirements, and living habits, the Sabap Pig developed into three size types: large, medium, and small. In the late 1950s, during the first livestock and poultry breed resource survey, the name "Sabap Pig" was officially used. The genetic resources of the Sabap Pig were included in the *Chinese Pig Breed Register* in 1986, and in the *Yunnan Province Livestock and Poultry Breed Register* in 1987. On June 2, 2006, the Ministry of Agriculture listed it in the *National Livestock and Poultry Genetic Resources Protection Catalogue* under Announcement No. 662, and on June 9, 2006, the Yunnan Provincial Department of Agriculture included it in the *Yunnan Provincial Livestock and Poultry Genetic Resources Protection Catalogue* under Announcement No. 15. In 2011, it was recorded in the *Chinese Livestock and Poultry Genetic Resources Register: Swine Volume*. In October 2011, during the Yunnan “Six Famous Pigs, Six Famous Cattle, Six Famous Sheep, Six Famous Chickens, and Six Famous Fish” evaluation event organized by the Yunnan Provincial Department of Agriculture and other departments, the Sabap Pig was named one of Yunnan’s “Six Famous Pigs.” Local ham producers in Luquan use the Sabap Pig and its crossbred varieties as raw materials to produce “Sabap Ham,” which received the title of “Yunnan Famous Trademark” in November 2008. With an annual production and sales volume of 5,200 tons, Sabap Ham is popular both within and outside the province and has grown into one of the more influential “Yunnan Ham” brands.

　　Sabap Pig:

　　【Breed Characteristics】Sabap Pigs are categorized into large, medium, and small types based on body size, head shape, physical features, and age of sexual maturity. The large type is called “Bagua Head,” characterized by a large head, big ears, a large belly that does not sag, a long body, a thick and long tail, a slightly concave face, and sturdy limbs resembling “wearing leggings,” with relatively late maturity. The small type is known as “Dog Head” or “Oil Gourd” Pig, featuring a slender snout, thin tail, small ears, short body, thin and short limbs, and sparse hair. The medium type is called “Goat Head” or “Two Tiger Head,” falling between the large and small types. Most have black hair, with 22.7% having fiery red hair, and 11.4% exhibiting “six white” or incomplete “six white” markings.

　　【Breed Performance】Adult weight of Sabap Pigs: large sows weigh 140 kg, medium sows 43 kg, small sows 36 kg, and boars are usually castrated after breeding and rarely raised beyond six months. Litter size: 11.83 piglets for multiparous sows, with a daily weight gain of 423 g during the fattening period. The pH of Sabap Pork is 6.48±0.15, meat color score is 3.19±0.31, marbling score is 3.25±0.41, water loss rate is 1.74%±0.58%, drip loss is 1.86%±0.71%, muscle tenderness of the longissimus dorsi is 30.34%±1.10, semimembranosus is 33.52±11.9, intramuscular fat is 6.53%±1.65%, all within the normal range for pork (pH 6–7, meat color 3, marbling 4, water loss <30%, intramuscular fat 3%–5%).

　　A new strain of Sabap Pig, refined through six generations of purebred selection, achieves 8.72 piglets for first parity and 11.84 for multiparous sows, with 37.2% of piglets having seven pairs of teats, accounting for 37.2% of total births. Meat pigs reach 87 kg body weight at 195 days, with a feed-to-gain ratio of 3.63. In crossbreeding programs, the selected hybrid sows—Yuesa (Yorkshire × Sabap) yield 13.3 piglets, and Changsa (Landrace × Sabap) yield 12.4. The hybrid meat pigs Yuesa and Dusa reach 90 kg at 163.8 and 171.7 days respectively, with feed-to-gain ratios of 3.45 and 3.37, and lean meat percentages of 54% and 55.3%. Three-way cross meat pigs Duyuesa and Yu changsa reach market weight at 162.5 and 167 days, with feed-to-gain ratios of 3.03 and 3.13, lean meat percentages of 59.3% and 60.96%, all meeting premium quality standards. The Sabap Pig breeding system is centered around the Chuxiong Prefecture Pig Breeding Farm, with four expansion farms in three counties and one university (Lufeng County, Yao’an County, Yuanmou County, and Yunnan Agricultural University), now extended to over ten counties and cities across five prefectures.

　　Geographic Range

　　The production area of Luquan Sabap Pigs is located within the Luquan Yi and Miao Autonomous County, Kunming City, Yunnan Province, covering 15 townships including Sayingpan, Tuanjie, Zhongping, Yunlong, Maoshan, Zegui, Malutang, Wudongde, Jiaopingdu, Tanglang, Cuilin, Xueshan, Wumeng, Zhuanlong, and Jiulong, as well as Pingshan (Subdistrict Office). The geographical coordinates are between 102°14′–102°57′ east longitude and 25°24′–26°22′ north latitude, spanning 69 km from east to west and 105 km from north to south, with a breeding area of 4,229 square kilometers, an annual inventory of 130,000 pigs, and an annual pork output of 4,500 tons.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　4.1 External Features: Sabap Pigs have predominantly black hair, with a minority exhibiting fiery red. They are of medium size with a slender body. The head is of medium size, with a narrow forehead and either complete or incomplete Bagua wrinkles. Ears are medium-sized, slightly forward and downward. The snout is slightly long, though some are of medium length. The belly does not drag on the ground, the hips are slightly pointed, the limbs are strong and sturdy, and the tail is thick and long, with a low tail root and 5–6 pairs (some with 7 pairs) arranged neatly. Sabap Pigs mature early sexually; boars enter puberty at 2–3 months, sows at 3–4 months; boars are ready for breeding around 150 days, sows around 198 days. Sows average 7–8 piglets per first litter and 8–10 per later litter. 4.2 Internal Quality Features: Sabap Pigs are highly resistant to coarse feed and harsh conditions, with high intramuscular fat content (6.5–7.14%) and unique flavor. Moisture content is <70%; pH 5.6–6.75; crude fat ≥26.14%; protein ≥20%; total amino acids ≥15%. 4.3 Quality and Safety Standards: The breeding and sale of Sabap Pigs must comply with the *Law of the People’s Republic of China on Animal Epidemic Prevention* and the *Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Quality and Safety of Agricultural Products*, among others. Product quality strictly adheres to NY 5030-2001 *Criteria for Veterinary Drug Use in the Rearing of Non-Polluting Food Pigs*, NY 5031-2001 *Criteria for Veterinary Epidemic Prevention in the Rearing of Non-Polluting Food Pigs*, NY 5032-2001 *Criteria for Feed Use in the Rearing of Non-Polluting Food Pigs*, and NY 5033-2001 *Criteria for Feeding Management in the Rearing of Non-Polluting Food Pigs*.