Articles - Economy

Restoring normalcy in China is the key factor in the current world market for pork. That's just how things stand.

We believe that the price of pork in Spain won't drop until after summer.

In US, even with record China sales, production overwhelms the markets, a quite different situation than in Spain, where pig prices soar while packers make handsome profits on exports without being able to raise the prices for pork going into domestic and retail sales.

As we close an exceptional year in the pork industry, Spanish's analyst Guillem Burset analyzes the current situation and clues us in to how next year may be.

Overwhelming euphoria should not blind us or cloud our senses: What will happen when China returns to self-sufficiency?

With the emergence of artificial, "lab-grown" meat, What does the future hold for livestock farming? will livestock farming disappear all-together?

Production reaps an ample harvest of profits while processing continues to accumulate losses. China imports more and more...

The pig price in China has grown by 27.5% in 4 weeks from an already record price.

China has been buying great volumes of pork cuts in all Europe for a few weeks. The pig price in China has shown a spectacular rise.

How ready is the global meat sector for up to 25% of their current production to be offset by plant-based products in the next five years?

It is obvious that the current situation cannot last much, and that a correction will be needed soon: or our European competitors increase their prices or we reduce them.

Floods, African swine fever, tariffs war, heat waves, and some more issues... How will they affect the once-in-a-lifetime profit-palooza that many pork industry participants hoped for earlier?

We think that the price will remain where it is now. We don't exclude any rise: the “beep” of the electrocardiogram, but without a real projection.

A hard Brexit would mean a fall of EU pork exports to the UK of 48%, a fall on pig prices of 7% and a total of 33,000 job losses in the European meat industry.

China is still buying, but with a great moderation. Either way, the pig price in Spain will still grow. In late May 2019 it exceeds €1.41, and summer has not started yet.

What lessons can be drawn from the current situation in China in order to face future pork production threats beyond health issues?

The price of pork in Spain has risen 32% in twelve weeks. Increase in demand from China and the opening of a new slaughterhouse suggest further rises.

"When you want to test the depths of a stream, don't use both feet"

The rise in pork price is being so intense and important that the processing sector will have to make a superhuman effort and transfer the rises in price to the final product as soon as possible.

The current situation in China has many similarities to the old-time hog cycle liquidation phase.

Guillem Burset foresees a very profitable 2019, but not for all the actors in the Spanish pig sector.

The relationship between the farmer and the abattoir, daily and passionate most of the time, ends up creating a bond. Its quality will, undoubtedly, be put to the test in Spain.

Pork supply, pork consumption and purchasing power in China, US and China trade war and globalism are some of the balls in play and many more are to come.

Spain is the leading supplier of pork for France, with more than 315,000 tonnes per year.