According to data from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), Dutch piglet exports fell by 4.6% year-on-year in 2025, but Spain surpassed Germany for the first time to become the largest destination.
Spain imported 2.67 million head for the year, a 13.2% increase year-over-year; Germany, meanwhile, saw a 16.9% decline to 2.22 million head. Other markets were generally under pressure: Belgium-Luxembourg fell by 6.4%, Austria by 14.6%, and Romania plummeted by 35.3%; Poland saw a slight recovery after consecutive declines.
Viewed over a ten-year cycle, structural divergence is even more pronounced: Germany’s imports have halved from their 2017 peak of 4.6 million head, while Spain’s imports have surged from approximately 190,000 head in 2016 to 2.67 million head—a tenfold increase—driven by the expansion of its fattening and slaughtering capacity and cost competitiveness. Although Belgium-Luxembourg remains firmly in third place, its volume has shrunk by nearly half compared to the 2018 peak.
This shift marks a realignment of the European swine industry’s center of gravity from northern Germany to the Iberian Peninsula, which will reshape the logistics, disease prevention, and procurement dynamics of the industry chain.
Disclaimer: Some of the information in this article is sourced from the internet. The sources have been clearly cited, and all copyrights belong to the original authors. The content is provided for readers’ reference only. If any rights of the original authors have been infringed, please contact us promptly via the comments section so we may remove the content.
Spain imported 2.67 million head for the year, a 13.2% increase year-over-year; Germany, meanwhile, saw a 16.9% decline to 2.22 million head. Other markets were generally under pressure: Belgium-Luxembourg fell by 6.4%, Austria by 14.6%, and Romania plummeted by 35.3%; Poland saw a slight recovery after consecutive declines.
Viewed over a ten-year cycle, structural divergence is even more pronounced: Germany’s imports have halved from their 2017 peak of 4.6 million head, while Spain’s imports have surged from approximately 190,000 head in 2016 to 2.67 million head—a tenfold increase—driven by the expansion of its fattening and slaughtering capacity and cost competitiveness. Although Belgium-Luxembourg remains firmly in third place, its volume has shrunk by nearly half compared to the 2018 peak.
This shift marks a realignment of the European swine industry’s center of gravity from northern Germany to the Iberian Peninsula, which will reshape the logistics, disease prevention, and procurement dynamics of the industry chain.
Disclaimer: Some of the information in this article is sourced from the internet. The sources have been clearly cited, and all copyrights belong to the original authors. The content is provided for readers’ reference only. If any rights of the original authors have been infringed, please contact us promptly via the comments section so we may remove the content.