Northeast Min Pig

Northeast Min Pig

　　The Northeast Min Pig is an ancient local pig breed in the northeastern region, coming in three types: large (Da Min), medium (Er Min), and small (Hobo Pig). Currently, apart from a small number of large and small Min Pigs raised in remote rural areas, the majority of farmers primarily raise the medium-sized type.

　　Characteristics

　　The Northeast Min Pig has notable advantages such as high litter size, good meat quality, cold resistance, and the ability to thrive on coarse feed, earning recognition both domestically and internationally.

　　Specific Details

　　Breed Characteristics

　　The pig’s entire body is covered in black hair. It has a strong constitution and a medium-sized head. Its face is long and straight, with large, drooping ears. The back and loin are relatively flat with a single spine ridge, having more than 07 vertebrae. The limbs are sturdy, the hindquarters are sloped and narrow, and the bristles are of good quality, with dense brownish-red downy hair in winter. At 8 months old, boars weigh 79.5 kg, with a body length of 105 cm, while sows weigh 90.3 kg and measure 112 cm in length.

　　Fattening Performance

　　At 240 days old, the pigs weigh between 98–101.2 kg, with a daily weight gain of 495 g. It takes 4.23 kg of mixed concentrate to produce 1 kg of weight gain. When slaughtered at 99.25 kg, the dressing percentage is 75.6%. In recent years, through selective breeding and improved feed formulations, pigs can reach 90 kg by 233 days old, with a lean meat ratio of 48.5% and a feed-to-meat ratio of 4.18:1.

　　Reproductive Performance

　　Sexual maturity begins to show at 3–4 months of age. The estrus cycle of sows lasts 18–24 days, with estrus duration of 3–7 days. In rural areas, boars and sows begin mating at 6–8 months old when they weigh 50–60 kg. Adult sows have a conception rate of generally 98%, a gestation period of 114–115 days, an average litter size of 14.7 piglets, 13.19 live births, and 11–12 piglets surviving to two months old.

　　Crossbreeding Performance

　　When using Duroc boars as sires to cross with Northeast Min Pigs, the first-generation hybrids reach 90 kg by 205 days old, with a feed-to-meat ratio of 3.81:1 and a lean meat ratio of 56.19%. When using Landrace boars as sires, the hybrids reach 90 kg in 127.4 days, with a feed-to-meat ratio of 3.22:1 and a lean meat ratio of 53.47%. When using Hampshire boars as sires, the first-generation hybrids reach 90 kg by 179 days old, with a feed-to-meat ratio of 3.78:1 and a lean meat ratio of 56.65%.