Meta-Analysis of Chromium and Pig Reproduction

Chromium is ubiquitous; it is found in humans, animals, and the environment as it circulates through crops, animal feed, animals, manure, and soil. Chromium has also been used in pig feed. Chromium is reported to improve pig reproduction, but studies are conflicting, so we conducted a meta-analysis of 312 records. We found that chromium did not affect pig litter size and piglet weight. Chromium is useful in animal husbandry, but excessive chromium can significantly inhibit plant growth. This meta-analysis suggests that pig farms should supplement chromium to pigs as needed based on feed chromium content.