Emerging pig farming and its economic contribution to enhance the livelihood of socio-economically backward families in Tamil Nadu

The average per capita availability of meat in India is 2.8 kg against the recommended levels of 10.8 kg per annum. As a result, half of all mothers and children in the country are undernourished. In this context, low investment and least maintenance pig farming is emerging as one of the profitable business propositions. The present study has been carried out to assess the economic contribution of backyard piggery in the livelihood security of socio-economically backward families in Tamil Nadu. Data were collected through observation and personal interaction with 240 randomly selected piggery farmers from four districts. A total of 2455 animals were covered under the study. Majority of the farmers were marginal landholders with an average holding of less than 0.7 ha. The estimated average annual income from pig farming was Rs. 21,435 and its percent contribution to total annual household income was 31.25. We conclude that pig farming can be a better option to meet the nutritional requirement and livelihood security of landless and marginal level farmers.