Belgian research on housing pigs and effect on boar taint

Eline Kowalski, a student at the University of Ghent conducted a study for her master’s thesis, to examine the effect of separated and mixed fattening of pigs on boar taint. The study follows the declaration of the EU to stop surgical castration of male pigs from 2018. Therefore, understanding is necessary to be able to eliminate the possible occurrence of boar taint in intact boars as much as possible. One of the findings was that bears in mixed housing were considerably more active and showed more aggressive and sexual behavior. With respect to both housing types there was no difference with regard to skin damage, tail and ear biting. The entire report (in Dutch) can be read and downloaded via http://www.varkensloket.be/Portals/63/Documents/Kowalski.pdf?ver=2015-11-09-133152-970