Møllevang, one of Denmark’s leading pig breeding companies, and PIC, a global leader in swine genetics, announced that, effective July 2, the two companies have entered into a strategic relationship.

According to the announcement, the strategic relationship was announced in November 2017, and all closing conditions have now been fulfilled.

The relationship combines PIC’s and Møllevang’s complementary supply chains, sales and marketing infrastructure and genetics for the benefit of pig producers globally.

The combination further differentiates the offering to pig producers, the companies said. PIC and Møllevang will invest in their supply and sales infrastructure in order to ensure that producers in Denmark have access to PIC products, such as its PIC408 Pietrain. PIC will also offer producers in various geographies outside Denmark access to Møllevang products. The Møllevang nucleus and multiplication farms will further strengthen the availability of breeding stock in Europe.

Consistent with past practice, Møllevang and PIC will focus on further acceleration of the rate of genetic improvement. Genetic gain can be accomplished by expanding population size and genetic diversity, by investing in data capture to increase selection accuracy and by reducing the generation interval, the companies said. The relationship provides the parties with expanded opportunities to accelerate product improvement.

Last, producers in Denmark will benefit from PIC’s expertise in genetic improvement and services focused on maximizing value for pig producers. Møllevang will be the exclusive distributor of PIC products in Denmark, and its customers will have access to PIC’s global technical services team that supports producers in realizing the genetic potential on their farms.

Møllevang chief executive officer Niels Pedersen said, “This is an exciting moment for Møllevang. PIC’s technological leadership and global scale is a complementary fit for Møllevang. Together, we can offer our customers access to the highest-quality breeding stock and technical services.”

PIC chief operating officer Bill Christianson added, “We look forward to work with Møllevang to grow our presence in Denmark, strengthen the supply chain and further accelerate genetic gain to make the world’s best pig. Our goal is to make PIC and Møllevang customers the most successful producers in the world.”

Since 2000, Møllevang has focused on multiplication of Landrace, Large White and Duroc pure line populations and expanded into nucleus production in 2002. Since July 2017, Møllevang has operated independently, selling high-quality breeding stock to producers in Europe and beyond.

PIC is a subsidiary of Genus, a U.K.-based company with a vision to pioneer animal genetic improvement to help nourish the world.