Pig

What it is

The pig (Sus domesticus) is the domestic pig people keep for meat. People domesticated pigs more than once from wild boar, and today most meat pigs are commercial lines. Village pigs and heritage breeds remain. Released and escaped animals have formed feral populations in many countries.

Range

Farms worldwide, from village sties to industrial houses. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations maps the global distribution of pigs as livestock.

What happened

Pigs were domesticated more than once from wild boar. Today most meat pigs are commercial lines. Village pigs and heritage breeds remain, and released or escaped animals have formed feral populations in many countries.

When / status

A living domesticate, raised for meat.

Human role

We keep them as food, and released or escaped animals have formed feral populations in many countries.

Sources

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Livestock Systems: pigs.

• FAO Livestock Systems: pigs