People rush to restore herds, pig breeding prices are about to increase

After selling 50 pigs at the end of June, Mr. Nguyen Dinh Duc (Tao Son commune, Anh Son) cleaned up the barn and started a new herd. Mr. Duc said: “If the previous batch of 30 pigs was sold at the beginning of the year, the pig price was low and the feed price was high, so the barn was left empty for half a year. Now, this batch of pigs is selling at a high price, so I decided to re-herd immediately. The scale is 100 pigs, but I have only started a herd of 50 pigs. I will wait to see how the market develops before I can fully raise the barn.”

With decades of experience in farming, Mr. Nguyen Van Dung (Nghia Binh, Tan Ky) always watches the market to enter the herd appropriately, avoiding losses. But with the development of the pig market this year, Mr. Dung said that it is "difficult to predict", so after selling 10 tons of pork on the occasion of Lunar New Year, Mr. Dung still left the entire row of barns empty. By the beginning of May 2023, when the sows gave birth, he left 30 pigs to raise for meat. And at the end of June, he bought 70 more super lean 3-blood pigs to restore the herd.

At this time, farmers are actively restocking their herds after a long period of emptying their pens due to losses. Therefore, the demand for piglets is high, the piglet market is vibrant, consumption is strong and prices are increasing.

Mr. Hoang Kim Tung, a trader specializing in supplying breeding pigs in the Con Cuong, Tuong Duong, and Ky Son areas, said: “For about a month now, the breeding pig market has been bustling again. The number of breeding pigs sold has tripled compared to 2-3 months ago. In June alone, I supplied 400-500 breeding pigs to farms, ranches, and small-scale households in the 3 districts.”

Specializing in supplying breeding pigs to Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces, Ms. Le Na (Tuong Son commune, Anh Son) said that currently, breeding pigs are selling very well, the number of breeding pigs sold has increased dramatically, there are days when hundreds of pigs are sold, the most popular is the super lean 3-blood breed.

Accordingly, the price of piglets is also on the rise by 200,000-300,000 VND/pig. Specifically, the price of super 3-blood pigs from 7-10kg is 1.4-1.6 million VND/pig (an increase of 500,000 VND/pig); piglets of households range from 700-1.1 million VND/pig (an increase of 200,000 VND/pig).

“Not only are they repopulating their herds, but many farms and ranches have now increased their herds after a period of decreasing their herds. For example, at the beginning of the year they only raised 100 pigs, but now, after selling, the new batch has increased to 200-300 pigs. The price of live pigs has increased, live pigs are starting to become scarce. In addition, since the beginning of July, animal feed companies have simultaneously reduced the price of bran by 200-500 VND/kg (depending on the type), so farmers are rushing to repopulate their herds. High demand and high prices of live pigs will push up the price of piglets.”

According to forecasts, pig prices will continue to increase in the coming days. Meanwhile, traders said that at this time, pig prices are increasing but many farms have no pigs to sell, and pig wholesale markets are sometimes "out of stock". Therefore, after a long period of empty barns and reduced herds due to losses, the pig market has now recovered, prices are high, and pig farming is profitable, so people are actively re-herding, pushing up the price of piglets.

However, when re-herding, people also need to be cautious, consider, and calculate carefully to enter the herd with a reasonable number, and spread the herd appropriately to avoid mass selling at the same time, causing surplus and losses. In addition, attention should be paid to disease issues, especially African swine fever, when according to forecasts, the risk of disease recurrence and widespread spread will occur in the near future.

When buying breeding pigs, farmers need to go to breeding facilities that ensure disease safety; have clear origins. Breeding pigs need to be fully vaccinated; should not buy breeding pigs in places where an epidemic has just occurred. During transportation, it is necessary to arrange appropriate means and time of transportation; thoroughly disinfect the means before and after transporting the breeding pigs. Quarantine for at least 2 weeks to monitor health status; record full information about the breeding pigs in the breeding book such as: Date of pig import, address of the place selling the pigs, vaccination status... fully and accurately.