Raising Pigs, Raising a Family

Sun Xiuhua is a 27-year-old mother with three beautiful daughters. Her eldest is 5 and is about to enter kindergarten. Grandpa has died and grandma is now living with the family. Xiuhua needs to take care of grandma and her three children so she can’t go out to work. Her husband finds odd jobs outside, earning between RMB10,000-RMB16,000 [US$1,400 – 2,200] a year, which, even on a good year, is still below the internationally agreed upon poverty line of US$1.90 per person per day.

Xiuhua and her three daughters

She has always been interested in starting a pig raising business but she didn’t have enough start-up capital and technical support. Through the Pigs for Poverty Project, Xiuhua received two sows last August 2018. What a great gift! She was thrilled and thankful. Whenever she had concerns or questions regarding her business, there was a successful pig business owner nearby to consult. Xiuhua strongly believed that she could manage her pig business well and was determined to do so.

Three months later, her sows produced their first litter of around 18 piglets. Selling a 20-kilogram piglet can earn at least RMB400 [US$60]. If the sows are looked after well, Xiuhua can earn around RMB10,000 [US$1,500] per year – enough to allow her to expand her business with more sows. With piglet litters increasing, Xiuhua can also expect more income each year.

This will help Xiuhua secure her children’s education. Xiuhua didn’t receive much education as a child, so she hopes that her children will be well educated and able to choose what they aspire to be when they grow up.

Xiuhua with Tracy from Captivating, in her pig raising house