Pig prices remain low from now until Lunar New Year

In Yen Bai, Lao Cai and Bac Giang, the three localities at the bottom of the Northern region, the price of live pigs was at 32,000 VND/kg, down 1,000 - 3,000 VND/kg compared to previous days. In other localities in the Northern region, the price of live pigs decreased but was still above 33,000 VND/kg.

The price of live pigs in the Central and Central Highlands regions decreased by 1,000 - 2,000 VND/kg in many provinces and cities in the region to 38,000 VND/kg. In particular, Thanh Hoa and Ha Tinh are the localities with the lowest price in the region at 33,000 VND/kg. The price of live pigs today in the Central and Central Highlands regions fluctuates between 33,000 - 38,000 VND/kg.

Since the beginning of 2021, the price of live pigs has decreased from 70,000-75,000 VND/kg to 35,000-40,000 VND/kg depending on the region. This is a record low price in the past 4 years. When the price of pigs peaked at about 100,000 VND/kg (in 2019), it has now decreased by 65%. Pig farmers everywhere, after selling at a loss, do not restock their herds but leave their barns empty because the more they raise, the more they lose.

The price of live pigs for slaughter is still 35,000-40,000 VND/kg, this is a record low price in the past 4 years.

According to Mr. Hung's calculation, with the current price of 35,000 VND/kg, a pig weighing 80kg, after being sold, will lose from 1.4 to 1.6 million VND/pig. With super lean pigs raised to weigh 100kg/pig, after being sold, the farmer will lose up to nearly 2 million VND/pig.

In traditional support areas, pork prices are being traded at 90,000 - 140,000 VND/kg depending on the type. The price of finished pork products at supermarket chains remains high at 129,000 - 169,000 VND/kg.

Recently, the price of live pigs has continuously decreased sharply. Currently, the price of pigs at farms in Nghe An fluctuates around 41,000 VND - 45,000 VND/kg. Photo courtesy of Thanh Phuc

Dr. Pham Cong Thieu, Director of the Institute of Animal Husbandry (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), assessed that the Covid-19 epidemic has had a huge impact on the market, with pork consumption decreasing due to the suspension of social activities, and the available supply while demand is very low.

“From now until Tet, in my opinion, pork prices will not improve even though the current number of pigs has not reached the same level as before the Covid-19 pandemic, and production has not reached surplus level. Pork prices have dropped due to reduced purchasing power and poor consumption. Hotels, restaurants, school areas, industrial parks, etc., which are places that consume a lot of pork, have not been operating for many months, so the demand has been pulled down to the lowest level,” said Dr. Pham Cong Thieu.

At a time when pork consumption in the market is low, Dr. Pham Cong Thieu suggested limiting the import of pork and chicken from abroad to consume domestic meat production.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the decrease in consumption has caused the livestock industry to stagnate by about 30% in terms of output. To overcome the surplus at this time and to ensure food supply at the end of the year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also encourages large enterprises to purchase for people at the maximum level, and store when prices drop too low. This helps to proactively supply a certain amount of food, while also releasing the stagnation in the barn.

The Vietnam Livestock Association recommends that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development coordinate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade to strictly control the import of livestock products, especially low-cost products and commercial live animals. At the same time, ministries should review and adjust import taxes on pork and poultry according to the tax rate frameworks that Vietnam has committed to in trade agreements./.