EU

Market

In general, the markets are affected by the holidays. There is less trade but in Europe the low number of slaughterings is keeping up prices, which is unusual now just before the industrial holidays in south Europe will start. However, Poland is an exception. Here, the demand is fine. Prices of legs, backs and front parts are stable, whereas shoulders and production meat have an upward trend. Collars are under pressure.
(Sources, Danish Crown, Tican, Danish Agriculture and Food Council)

Denmark

Vets offend regulations

A not-yet-published report from the Food Agency’s mobile vet unit reveals that 21 per cent of the 200 Danish vets that were subject to control last year have violated the regulations. The violations are, for example, a lax supply of medicine; lacking or deficient reports and that mandatory inspections have not been carried out. Several vets were reported to the police and fines have been given most of these are between €1,000 and €7,000. A few were as high as up to €25,000. It is worrying because with a too high consumption of medicine, there is a risk that the owners of the pig stocks by mistake deliver meat that contains residuals of antibiotics.
(Source, DR)

France

Wild boars

Wild boars have become a pest in France. Not only have they infested forests and woods but they do not hesitate to wander in towns at dusk and before dawn. They are attracted by easy food found in bins. Wild boars have now become a national issue and a control plan is expected this summer. Proposals should emerge from meetings attended by representatives of Ecology and Agriculture ministries, hunters and farmers. As an example, Denis Sibille, President of Interbev sometimes organises hunting week-ends in winter to get rid of the boars that regularly devastate his corn fields.

Reduction of feed costs needs to be passed on

Pig producers from the centre of France, also members of FRSEA (regional section of Farmers Union FNSEA) will no longer accept the loss of any further money. They want to see the feed manufacturers pass on the decreased costs for raw material. While the price of cereals decreased over the last two years feed prices have not changed. Some urgent measures will need to be taken before these farmers start demonstrating.

Market pigs

The atmosphere remains quiet.

Cuts

The situation for cuts remains difficult. The operators complain about the slowing down of activity, the consumption of pig meat being not good enough. Prices are on the decrease, prices for loins more than the others. Operators are not expecting a significant increase before the end of the month of August.

For more information, please contact AHDB France on +33 1 60 71 04 49.

Germany

Consumers are budgeting more tightly

According to AMI data, sales of meat have decreased by 1.2 per cent in the first half of 2009 compared to last year’s figures. Sales of pig meat have even decreased by 5 per cent. Sales of minced meat have increased, which is considered an economic activity the consumer is showing in times of financial uncertainty.

Exports however remain stable. Meat and meat products account for a fifth of export profits. Pig meat exports to Poland have increased significantly having summed up to 41.000 t in the first quarter of 2009.
(Source, afz)

Vion demands introduction of minimum wages

Vion has argued for the introduction of minimum wages in the meat processing industry. According to Heinz Schweer, Director of Vion GmbH, this would not only help to improve the tarnished reputation of the industry but it would also help to awaken interest among potential trainees. In the Vion plant Kasel-Golzig alone, five apprenticeship positions could not be filled this year.
(Source, schweine.net)

Big players reaching their limits?

Medium-sized slaughter businesses in Germany have done much better than expected. According to the Association of pig breeders in Germany (ISN), concerns that medium sized businesses might soon be pushed aside by the main players Tönnies, Vion and Westfleisch have so far not proved right.
(Source, afz)

Medium-sized businesses on the fast lane - pig slaughterings in million head

Spain

Exports

For the first time, the Barcelona based company, UPB GENETIC WORD SL, has exported pig pure breeders of Landrace, Large White and Pietrain, both males and females (including pedigree certificate of the National Association of Selected Pork of Spain) to the Republic of Vietnam. Vietnam has an important pig tradition, and the number of sows is quite similar to the Spanish, planning to grow up to 3.6 million in the next 10 years. The sanitary status and the high selection of the animals achieved by UPB GW contributed to this operation. The UPB genetics is present in Africa, America, and Europe and now in Asia, and it is well known at a global level.
(Source, Ediporguia)

Industry

Nutreco, one of the largest multinational companies in the food and agriculture sector has recently announced the purchase of the animal nutrition business of Cargill in Spain and Portugal. This means 10 new feed mills in Spain and two in Portugal, representing a total annual production of 700,000 tonnes of feed. In the future, Nanta, the animal nutrition business of Nutreco, will run 28 feed mills (three of them in Portugal) and a total production capacity of 3.3 million of tonnes of feed annually. Cargill will continue as a raw materials supplier of Nutreco.
(Source, Agrodigital)

The new European Regulations of food safety have caused the closure of several slaughterhouses in the province of Aragon. This situation has increased the number of unemployment and the cost of animal transportation in this province. Nowadays, at least three quarters of the nine million pigs produced in Aragon are slaughtered in the neighbouring province of Catalonia.
(Source, Abc)

Prices

Portugal

Prices

The Netherlands

Dutch exports are decreasing

During the first four months of the year Dutch exports of pig meat decreased by 11 per cent. The decrease is closely connected to a similar increase in exports of slaughter pigs to Germany. The trend is the same in Denmark that still more pigs are being slaughtered at German slaughterhouses where production costs are lower. During the first four months of the year, Holland exported a total of 2.2 million live pigs including piglets. Half of the exports went to Germany but there is also a strong increase in exports to several countries in East Europe where stocks have been reduced. On the other hand exports of pig meat to Russia and Belarus have decreased considerably.
(Source, Landbrugsavisen)

Retail moves

Vion has signed a contract with Plus to supply meat to its supermarkets. Vion already has an agreement with Netto for in-stores butcheries. Meanwhile, following the take-over of Van Pelt activities in Hellevoetsluis by Van Rooi, Jumbo supermarkets’ pork will be packed by Van Rooi in Helmond.

Russia

Russian meat imports expected to decline by 2012

According to the first Vice Premier of Russian Federation pork and poultry imports into Russia may decline significantly by the year 2012. A year ago the Russian pork market was comprised of 29 per cent imported pork and 36 per cent imported poultry meat. The current trend shows that imports of both pork and poultry decreased. The First Vice Premier also mentioned that during the past 10 years meat production in Russia has been on the decline. The meat herd dropped three times, beef production dropped 2.5 times. Meat consumption per capita dropped from 31kg in 1999 down to 16.6kg per capita. For reference: the government already earmarked 300 billion rubles of investment funds for the development of animal husbandry in country. Subsidies for pedigree animal husbandry jumped 1.4 times and the government takes care of 100 per cent of the interest rate for the farmer. Another 3 billion rubles were earmarked for establishing regional programmes for meat production.

Ukraine

Lithuanian pigs banned, Danish pigs suspended

The Ukrainian CVO issued a ban on imports of live pigs, pork and products and suspended imports of live pigs from the Kingdom of Denmark following the resolution No. 15-3-1-18/4182 dd. 16 July 2009. For reference: the Lithuanian CVO reported that a case of classical swine fever was registered in Lithuania in a herd that was originally imported from Denmark. This is why Danish pigs were suspended until the final details of the swine fever investigation in Lithuania become public.

Worries about massive meat imports

After recent attempts to impose an inspection on every single supplier of meat in EU which was violating the WTO rules the Ukrainian CVO postponed the imposition of the mandatory certification of suppliers. However, the worries are still with the CVO and the agency will keep watching meat imports more closely. The Ukrainian CVO, Petro Verbytskyi, reported that lately Ukraine has been importing around two million tons of meat per year. The remaining 1.9 million tons were supplied by the domestic Ukrainian producers. Now, since the country joined WTO it had to open its doors wider for imported products and the number of import licenses issued grew significantly. Domestic producers are unhappy and claim that imported meat is of inferior quality. During the first six months of 2009, Ukraine imported 198,000 tons of meat and products, which is 66,000 tonnes up from the same period a year ago. During 2008, imports totaled around 500,000 tons of meat and this seems to be the maximum potential for this market. The current consumption of pork per annum per capita is at 12.6 kg and makes up total consumption of around 600,000 tons annually. The current consumption stays well below the average in the EU countries or in Russia, e.g. 42.9 kg/per capita in Poland or 20 kg/per capita in Russia respectively.

USA

Tyson reduces its production

The US slaughterhouse company, Tyson Foods, is going to sell five farms and will reduce the number of sows by 20,000. It is going to happen over the next 10 weeks and hereafter 50,000 sows will be left in the company that both produces and slaughters pigs. The reason for the strong reduction by approximately 30 per cent is bad economy, high feed expenses, lack of liquidity and a decreasing demand for pig meat. The five farms will no longer produce piglets but on the other hand Tyson has no plans of closing down slaughtering plants. A reduction of stocks by 20,000 sows will correspond to a reduction of slaughter pigs by approximately 500,000 annually. For two years now the US pig producers have run their business with a deficit and it also made other producers reduce their production. Smithfield, the other giant within US pig production, already reduced its stock of sows by 10 per cent and last month the company announced that it is going to reduce the stock by another three per cent.

Viet Nam

Fourth largest sow population

With 4.150 million sows, Vietnam was overtaken by Russia (4.220 million) in 2008 as the third largest pork producer in the world. Nonetheless, the country has increased its sow population by one-third since 2000 with a progression similar to Russia’s. It must be noted that 90 per cent of the world growth in sow numbers has taken place in China, Russia and Vietnam. However, productivity in Russia and Vietnam lag behind the rest of the world. In terms of pork production, Vietnam ranks at number six with 2.6 million tonnes and Russia at number eight with 2.1 million tonnes. The Government has announced this week an important plan of modernisation of the agriculture and would like to double output.