Electricity Consumption in the Pork Production Chain From the Western Region of Paraná State, Brazil

Abstract

The development of swine farming resulted in the specialization and transformation of the productive chain with direct impact on the agroindustry. The intensive swine production is representative, with relevant performance in the international scenario, with an expressive increase in volumes and values produced and exported, contributing significantly to the performance of the Brazilian trade balance. This performance is due to the technological and organizational advances of the last decades. The constant changes and advances that swine farming has been undergoing promote the search for new ways of raising pigs. There is a constant incorporation of new technologies and an uninterrupted reorganization in the production systems in the industry, aiming to follow the industrial progress with greater cost reduction and increased profitability. In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the consumption of electric energy in the productive process of pig termination in rural properties in the western region of Paraná. The study was conducted in three pig farms, where data were collected on the consumption of electricity in the production, slaughter and processing of pigs. The average specific energy consumption in the production of pigs in the termination stage was 0.0058 kWh kg-1, accounting for 1% of the process, while at slaughter it was 0.22 kWh kg-1, responsible for 38.22 kWh kg-1 % of consumption and processing of 0.35 kWh kg-1, accounting for 60.78%. Thus, results showed that the processing stage consumes the most energy within the pig meat production chain.