Morroccan Pig Farming Skyrockets

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The stereotypical scenario for pig farming in Islamic countries is one of nonexistence born of the religious taboo against eating pork. On the other side of the coin though is the booming tourist trade and foreign worker influx. Seems many of the tourists and also the Chinese workers are interested in bacon, ham and everything else piggy for supper.

A Moroccan Jewish businessman Jean Yves Yoel Chriquia owns the country;s largest pork processing factory and also has a farm where he raises 1,000 pigs . While eating pork is forbidden to both Jewish and Islamic worshippers, neither religions Rabbis or Imams have appeared to have found a problem with the raising or processing of pigs as a business venture.

Nearly eighty percent of the production goes to hotels in the Marrakesh and Agadir tourism sectors. The tourism economic sector has blossomed in Morocco in recent years also. As expected the Gulf War in 1990, the World Trade Center attack, and the 2003 Gulf War beginning put a damper on the tourism industry in Morocco forcing many business who cater to mostly European tourism trade to close their doors. Since then there has been a rebound, in 2007 there were nearly 7.5 million tourists, in 2010 tourism experts expect almost 10 million travellers to arrive on the pleasant beaches of the North African nation. Morocco is predominantly a Muslim country.