HIGHLIGHTS
- Pork prices might continue to increase in the near future due to scarcity of supply and high cost of animal feed
- The government is currently intensifying discussions to offer a lot of urgent solutions to remove difficulties, including increasing imports and subsidizing farmers
FULL ARTICLE
In a statement on Thursday, the Thai government said pork exports would be banned until April 5. The Ministry of Commerce of this country will actively monitor the situation to assess whether it is necessary to extend the ban further.
The ban was introduced after the price of pork in the country skyrocketed to about 250 baht/kg (about 170,000 VND/kg), up more than 60% from the average price of 150 baht (about 100,000 VND/kg) a few months earlier. The Thai Pig Breeders Association estimates that the meat demand may increase when the Lunar New Year is approaching, leading to the pork price might be doubled to 300 baht/kg (about 200,000 VND/kg).
“Pork prices might continue to increase in the near future due to scarcity of supply and high cost of animal feed”, said Mr. Surachai Sutthitham, president of the Pig Breeders Association.
The government of this country is currently intensifying discussions to offer a lot of urgent solutions to remove difficulties, including increasing imports and subsidizing farmers.
Each year Thailand exports about 5% of live pork to neighboring countries, including Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar, etc.
According to Prapat Pothasethon, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, when Thailand eased restrictions on domestic business and tourism late last year, demand for pork picked up again. In the short term, the export ban can balance supply and demand, stabilizing the domestic market. In the long term, the government will promote livestock and actively produce domestic animal feed instead of importing as much as it is now.
According to data published by the Ministry of Agriculture of Thailand, there are about 190,000 farmers with an output of about 20 million pigs per year, 95% of which are smallholder farmers. Mr. Prapat Pothasethon added that in the past two years, due to the impact of African swine fever and the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the high price of feed and medicine, some pig raising households are forced to reduce production and delay re-herding.
The large shortage of meat directly affects the consumption habits and activities of domestic enterprises, especially the Lunar New Year is approaching.
Hong Dao
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