More than a year of stagnation with no way out: Pork suddenly increases sharply

Compared to April 2017 - when pork prices hit rock bottom and ministries and sectors had to join hands to call for pork rescue, the current price of live pigs has increased 2.5 - 3 times, notably, the price of live pigs is still on the rise.

Pig prices skyrocket, traders go to the pigsty to buy

After 8 pm, after several days of hesitation waiting for the price to increase, Ms. Phan Thi Chi in My Duc (Hanoi) also decided to sell her herd of more than 100 pigs at 43,000 VND/kg of live pigs.

Ms. Chi shared that when she first started her herd with more than 100 pigs, she only hoped that when she sold them for 36,000-37,000 VND, she would have made a profit and would no longer have to endure a net loss throughout 2017. However, when the selling price of pigs increased to 40,000 VND/kg, she began to hesitate, waiting a few days to see if the price would increase further to make a little more profit to make up for the previous loss.

"Traders came to the farm to ask for a deposit to buy pigs since May 1 at 39,000 VND/kg, but I shook my head. In the past few days, people have been coming in every day to ask to buy pigs, and the price they offered was also higher, so tonight I just closed the sale at 43,000 VND/kg." Ms. Chi said that with the price of 43,000 VND, she earned 400,000 VND more for each quintal of pigs compared to the beginning of May. She was also a bit lucky because she kept the profit for a few days before closing the sale, earning tens of millions more.

According to PV's records, the price of live pigs in many localities across the country is increasing sharply, even increasing every day.

Specifically, in Vinh Phuc, Nam Dinh, Hung Yen, the best quality live pigs are being sold at 42,000 VND/kg; in Hanoi, the price ranges from 41,000 - 43,000 VND/kg depending on the type. The sharpest increase in pig prices is in Son La and Ha Tinh. In these localities, farmers said that traders are coming to the pigsty to buy live pigs at 44,000 VND/kg. This is the highest price since the price fever in July 2017.

According to the report of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in March 2018, the price of live pigs only fluctuated around 31,000-34,000 VND/kg. However, up to now, after about 2 months, the price of live pigs has reached 44,000 VND/kg, an increase of about 10,000-13,000 VND/kg, helping pig farmers escape losses and switch to making quite a profit.

Not only did the price of live pigs increase to a record level, but the price of piglets also skyrocketed during this time, with many places having raised the price to 1-1.2 million VND/pig.

Don't hoard goods, it's easy to create a fever.o

Discussing the issue of pork prices increasing day by day, reaching a record level in nearly a year, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Duong, Deputy Director of the Department of Livestock Production (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) affirmed that the increase in pork prices since the beginning of April until now was within expectations, because it was the result of implementing policies to reduce supply and increase demand.

Mr. Duong said that the price of pork at this time in 2017 was very low, especially the low price lasted from the end of 2016 to 2017. At that time, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development had a policy to direct localities to reduce supply and increase demand with a policy of reducing sow herds, increasing domestic demand for pork, and reducing imports from other countries.

"Reducing the sow herd normally takes a year to see the effect. And up to this point, we have seen a positive impact in that pig prices across the country have increased sharply, helping farmers make a profit." He said, adding that the price of live pigs has increased to 40,000-42,000 VND/kg, with many places reaching 44,000 VND/kg, which is a very good exchange rate, ensuring the sustainable development of the pork industry. Because, with this price, farmers have made a profit, veterinary medicine and animal feed traders also have a profit, and consumers can accept buying because it is suitable for their budget.

He commented that the supply of pork in the market is equal to the demand. Accordingly, the price of over 40,000 VND/kg will be maintained for a relatively long time. However, he also noted that farmers should not hoard goods because it is easy to create a virtual fever, which is not sustainable. Pigs raised to the point of being ready for sale weighing 90-110 kg/head can be sold to make a profit, because our current supply is not lacking.

In addition, the Deputy Director of the Department of Animal Husbandry also said that one should maintain a stable family pig herd and not rush into the herd. In particular, one should not buy piglets at high prices at this time because it is easy to lose money when selling.

Pigs are raised for about 4 months before they can be sold. If they are mass-produced at this time, and sold in about 4 months, it will still be the peak of the hot season, and according to the law of hot weather, the demand for pork will decrease, and the price of pigs will decrease. From that, it can be seen that when introducing a new herd, farmers need to consider carefully to avoid oversupply like in early 2017, which caused a record drop in pig prices and caused heavy losses for farmers.