Economic Implication of Foetal Wastages through Slaughter of Pregnant Pigs: A Case Study of the Makurdi Municipal Abattoir in Benue State, Nigeria

Aim: This study was designed to determine the economic implication of foetal wastages through the slaughter of pregnant pigs (sows/gilts).

Study Design: Longitudinal study.

Place and Duration of Study: The municipal abattoir in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria served as the main source of empirical data. The abattoir was visited daily for 120 days over a period of 4 months (September to December, 2012).

Methodology: At each visit, the number and sex of pigs slaughtered, number of pregnant sows/gilts slaughtered, number of foetuses wasted and ages of the foetuses (which also indicated the stage of pregnancy of the dam) were recorded. A deterministic economic model was used to estimate the foregone revenues resulting from slaughter of pregnant sows.

Results: A total of 2095 pigs were slaughtered of which 39.46% were male and 60.54% were female. The total number of foetuses wasted was 969, revealing a monthly average of 242. The prevalence of pregnant female slaughtering was 9.0% whereas prevalence of foetal wastage was 76.55%. Frequency of foetal wastage decreased with increase in stage of pregnancy and the average male to female sex ratio of wasted foetuses was 45.76:56.24.

Foregone revenue for a single wasted foetus was estimated at ₦11,400-₦17,400.00 ($32.02-$48.88), while the average daily, monthly and annual foregone revenues of the abattoir were ₦75,292.25-₦114,919.75 ($211.50-$322.81), ₦2,258,767.50-₦3,447,592.50 ($6,344.85-$9,684.25) and ₦27,105,210.00-₦41,371,110.00 ($76,138.23-$116,210.98) respectively.

Conclusion: Curbing this huge economic waste through purposefully developed strategies (by both government and non-governmental organizations) as well as strictly supervised interventions is highly advocated.