At the annual French livestock show SPACEheld in September 2023, breeding organization Axiom held a knowledge meeting for interested potential business partners from Africa. It was the first time the organization organized such an event outside Africa, with French being the language of communication. The company welcomed around 25 interested guests, from six different countries, who together took part in lively discussions.
Expanding the pig business in Africa
The organization’s pig business in Africa is growing steadily. In the first 8 months of 2023, Axiom exported 2,800 doses of semen to various African countries, which is a threefold increase compared to 2022. In addition, breeding pig exports are also increasing. With a customer in Cameroon, an agreement has been signed for 120 breeding animals, delivery preferably still in 2023. Talks continue with two customers in Ivory Coast and one in Burkina Faso for the supply of breeding pigs.
The semen is always delivered fresh, explains the company’s export manager Sigrid Willems. He adds, “In many places, there is no electricity, so sperm storage is not possible. In addition, the storage and use of frozen sperm requires knowledge and materials that are not always available. That’s how we end up delivering fresh products.”
Educational programme
The program at SPACE, which lasted several hours, consisted of 4 blocks. After an introductory round, including the creator’s introduction, the AVE compound was introduced. This is a group of retired French agricultural consultants who advise on agricultural projects in emerging countries, both locally and remotely. A round table discussion closed the event, but then everyone was given an explanation of an Axiom handbook on how to care for pigs. It includes explanations of basics such as breeds, weights, fertilization, biosecurity, as well as calving. Willems explains: “People often don’t know about these basic things.”
For the African market, Axiom offers purebred sows and F1 animals. The package includes 4 terminals. In practice, the application of genetics does not always follow standards that are common in Europe. It is regularly the case that finishing pigs are produced using purebreds and slaughter pigs are from Landrace or Yorkshire sows.
Possibilities for pig farming in Africa
According to Willems, there is potential in pig farming in Africa. He can tell because of the increasing number of inquiries from the continent. That is why, at the beginning of October, the breeding organization aimed to attend the Sara agricultural exhibition in Ivory Coast.
What drives Axiom to invest in Africa?
“Africa is a growing market. We expect to export 3 times more sperm doses this year than last year. By the beginning of September we had sold 2,800 doses. It is a bit comparable to China. With foreign inputs, producers aim to develop their pig sector and do so in their own way. Pigs also bring relatively large amounts of money, between 3 and 5 euros per kilo. However, small farms with few financial reserves are sometimes forced to stop again. We export semen and animals. With a suitable partner, we would also be open to starting an insemination center or breeding farm.”
![Photo: Axiom](https://www.pigprogress.net/app/uploads/2023/10/IMG_Picture2.jpg)
![Photo: Axiom](https://www.pigprogress.net/app/uploads/2023/10/IMG_Picture2.jpg)
What kind of farms are we talking about?
“They are very different and the answer depends on the country. There are farms with a few to a maximum of ten sows. But there are also farms with 200 or 300 sows. In Ivory Coast, Cameroon and South Africa, the pig sector is the most developed. Certainly the latter country already has good farms.”
How much interest is there in investing in Africa – surely the real growth markets are in Asia?
“The scale cannot be compared. In Asia there are farms with 10,000 sows. However, the growth of the pig sector in Africa cannot be underestimated either. There’s definitely a future in it.”
Isn’t there a risk to high quality genetics if producers have relatively little experience with pigs?
“That’s why we always emphasize that genetics is a factor in pig production, but not the main factor. We have manuals showing how pigs should be cared for. In this way we highlight issues such as nutrition, management and biosecurity. It’s really about the whole picture. AVE consultants are also on site and we sometimes refer to colleagues on the ground. We only indicate what can be extracted from pigs with our genetic potential.”