Danish producers are continuing to lose money and this forecast, which was announced at the annual meeting of Danish Pig Production, will do little to cheer them up.

Earlier hopes of nearly 1.50p, which would have put them back into profit, have been dashed by the global financial crisis. As a result the Danish herd is expected to continue to decline next year as will the European herd in general. The Danes see an overall drop in the European herd next year of 3-4 percent.

Reports from Denmark suggest more than 1,100 producers will have quit the industry by the end of this year - about 15 percent of Danish pig producers.

Producers are said to be losing more than 324 on every pig at present. “We are tremendously bleeding,“ said one, Lars Arne Jensen.

However producers have been told that lower feed prices will help them return to profitability next year. Forecast pig prices are 1.13p in the first quarter, 1.24p in the second, 1.27p in the third and 1.21 in the fourth quarter.

On average, next year’s prices are predicted to be 18 percent higher than this year. These forecasts are not going to do much to cheer up producers, said Lindhart B. Nielsen.

Currently it costs circa 1.30p a kilo to produce pigmeat in Denmark. The settling price from the slaughterhouses is just a whisper over 100p.