Use of rapeseed cake for improving competitiveness in swine production

The piggery branch is still keeping its leading role in meat production/consumption worldwide – having about 40 percent share of it. The European Union has enrolled pork into the category called ”light market regulation product paths” hence the development of production/consumption is exposed mainly to the extremities of the markets. Feeding costs of pigfattening are fluctuating depending dominantly on fodder prices. Feedstuffs do have about 50–60 percent share of the ”total” as concerning the cost structure of slaughter hog production. Fodder and feeder pig, these two main production factors amount to 90 percent of the total cost. Regarding changes of slaugther pig procurement prices the lack of market rules causes peculiar situation and tendencies very often, notably the development of fodder prices in opposite direction. Hog raising/fattening farms in Hungary and in each member state of the European Union 27 are under the stress of the market to minimize the production costs further and further more, because of being able to survive. Nowadays, an emerging new industrial sector – the biofuel-producing – provides opportunities to utilizable by-products of this branch as feedstuffs, in a much higher volume. In the case of reasonable use, these novel feedstuffs could be one of the most effective means to increase competitiveness of animal husbandry, as well as of pig farming. Through applying feedstuffs – the so called ”traditionals” and the novel ones reasonably together – costs of pig fattening could in merit be reduced. Since soya (beside feeder pig) has got deerminant role in development of the fattening cost (especially if its price is too high, as usual), replacement of this component for example with rapeseed cake could be a cost effective tool for improving profitability of pig farming. As the result of work, there was a model elaborated and presented in this paper. Through applying this model (based on fix parameters, as well), the extention of cost reduction – according to the rate of substitution – can be calculated. Considering the present conditions, it is possible to reach cost saving up to 1000 HUF per pig, in fattening.