Group housing systems for pregnant sows represent the primary alternative to gestation crates. Understanding their welfare trade-offs and best practices is essential for evaluating pork welfare claims.
Group housing systems represent a genuine welfare improvement over gestation crates, but they require skilled management to achieve their welfare potential. Aggression during mixing periods causes injuries and stress, particularly in poorly managed systems. Well-designed group housing with appropriate space, stable social groups, and ESF technology can provide substantially better welfare than crates while maintaining production efficiency. The transition from crates to group housing is thus not simply a housing change — it requires investment in management skills and facility design.