Pork Producers Benefit From Swine Fever in China

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. pork producers have been enjoying the increase in demand for pork over the past two years as China has been dealing with a loss of their domestic swine industry. With more cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) announced by the Chinese over the past few months, it’s a reminder of how devastating the disease has been to their hog industry. Unfortunately, for American producers, China is expected to begin the rebuilding of their domestic herd which is expected to put pressure on U.S. exports. USDA is currently projecting pork imports into China to decline by roughly 10 percent this season as overall animal protein imports decline by 4 percent. According to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) , it is important to remember the scale of China in global pork markets. Prior to ASF, China both consumed and produced roughly half of the world’s pork. Since the outbreak, pork imports by China have surged over 250 percent (2018 to 2020) and the largest beneficiary has been the European Union, which last year supplied 58 percent of China’s 5.6 million metric tons of import demand. The United States supplies 17 percent, followed by North American neighbors Canada and Mexico with 9 percent market share each. Uncertainty will be the industry for the next few years as questions abound regarding China’s herd recovery.
(SOURCE: All Ag News)