Pork prices increase sharply, Nghe An people are still afraid to re-herd
(Baonghean.vn) - For about 2 months now, the price of live pigs has begun to recover. In particular, in the past 3 weeks, the price of pigs has increased sharply, now reaching 65,000 VND/kg, and farmers are starting to make a profit... However, farms and people are still very cautious when re-herding and increasing their herds...
Having just sold a batch of 50 pigs, Mr. Pham Viet Duc, the owner of a large-scale pig farm in Thanh Huong commune (Thanh Chuong), was very excited because of the good price. Mr. Duc said: “Almost every month, there is a batch of pigs for sale. In previous months, the price of pigs was still below 60,000 VND/kg. In particular, in the first 2 months of the year, the price of pigs for sale was below 50,000 VND/kg, so farmers suffered losses.
With the current increase, the price of 65,000 VND/kg is a good profit for farmers. Large, closed-scale farms have good profits, ranging from 800,000 VND - 1 million VND/head.
As the owner of a 1,500-head pig farm, Mr. Tien Dung (Thai Hoa town) is very excited that the price of pork has recently recovered rapidly. If in early March, the price of pork had not yet reached 60,000 VND/kg, then in April and early May, the price of pork increased sharply.
In particular, for the past half month, pork prices have been increasing day by day, with traders continuously announcing adjustments to their purchase prices. “Compared to this time last year, pork prices have increased by 12,000-15,000 VND/kg. With this price, large farms are making quite good profits after a long period of struggling with losses due to high feed prices and low pig prices. A pig price of 60,000 VND/kg is when you start making a profit.”
The reason for the increase in live pig prices is partly due to increased market demand. Normally, at the beginning of the year, after selling to serve the Tet market, people will focus on restocking their herds. However, at that time, the African swine fever epidemic recurred, making restocking difficult. Therefore, up to now, the supply of pork on the market is limited, and the price of pork has increased.
“Pig prices will remain high and are expected to continue to increase for at least two more months. After that, they will gradually stabilize when the next batch of pigs is sold,” said Ho Van Han, a trader specializing in buying pork from Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, and Ha Tinh provinces.
The price of live pigs has increased sharply, but according to records, at traditional markets, pork prices have fluctuated slightly, purchasing power has not decreased compared to before. Specifically, the price of various types of meat ranges from 120,000-150,000 VND/kg; at supermarkets and clean food stores, meat prices range from 140,000-180,000 VND/kg.
Ms. Pham Thi Thuy, a pork trader at Vinh wholesale market, said: "Currently, the price of pork at slaughterhouses has increased by 5,000-10,000 VND/kg, but the retail price has not increased much.
The reason is that when the weather gets hot, pork is not a top priority on the menu, and demand is not high. If the price is increased too much, customers will be lost. Therefore, the retail price of meat remains the same as before or only increases by 2,000-3,000 VND/kg, accepting to sell for quantity to compensate for the price.
Although pig prices are on the rise, pig farmers are still very cautious when restocking and increasing their herds. According to farmers' calculations, the investment cost for each pig until it reaches 100 kg is more than 4 million VND. Meanwhile, the risk of disease is very unpredictable. Pig prices on the market are also unstable and very difficult to predict.
“The farm’s size is up to 2,500 pigs, but in recent years it has only maintained 1,500 pigs. The price of pork is increasing, compared to before, it is quite profitable. However, we do not dare to increase the herd for the first batches, because currently the price of feed has decreased but not significantly, input costs are still high and the price of pigs is unstable and difficult to predict. Besides, there are still difficulties in controlling diseases,” said Mr. Nguyen Viet Danh, owner of a pig farm in Quynh Luu.