A unique breed of pigs will be restored in Ukraine

A breed called “Mirgorodskaya” is the first Ukrainian breed of pigs. Pigs of this breed are black-and-white. Today, in Ukraine, there are only six sows, two male pigs and four piglets of the “Mirgorodskaya” breed, writes “Agro-Center”.

Pavlo Vashchenko, a Senior Research Worker at the Selection Laboratory of the Poltava Pig Breeding Institute and Agri-Industrial Production at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, said that these are only pigs of the “Mirgorodskaya” breed left. Others were slaughtered at the end of the summer because of the ASF.

“There were 150 sows of the “Mirgorodskaya” breed, 10 male pigs and young piglets. All of them were eliminated. It is impossible to restore the breed with six sows and two male pigs that are left. The animals are related. Therefore, the genetic features of the breed will be lost. Chances are high that “Mirgorodskaya” breed will disappear completely”,

said Pavlo.

However, scientists plan to restore the population of this breed. To do this, they intend to buy pigs of this breed from people. They will carry out a DNA test in order to make sure that these pigs are of the “Mirgorodskaya” breed.

“We don’t have statistics on pigs of this breed living on private farms. We know that there are about 10 heads are on the “Svitanok” farm of the Kharkiv region. We also plan to use sperm stored in the Genetic Resources Bank of the Institute of Breeding and Genetics. We will use it to fertilize the remaining sows. We hope to restore the breed step-by-step”,

said a scientist.

The “Mirgorodskaya” breed of pigs was brought out in the 19th century. However, it was approved only in 1940. The quality of meat and fat is considered to be a gold standard both in terms of taste qualities and thickness (about 4 cm).