Pork market: Businesses should not "throw away the bowl and forsake the tray"

Pork prices rise

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), in the first quarter of 2018, the price of live pigs remained at 31,000 - 32,000 VND/kg, but by the beginning of the second quarter, the price began to increase from 35,000 - 48,000 VND/kg, especially in the third quarter, the price increased from 49,000 - 53,000 VND/kg and is currently at 50,000 - 51,000 VND/kg. Since May 2018, the price of pigs in Vietnam has increased rapidly and is always higher than the price of live pigs in China and Thailand.

Currently, the domestic price of live pigs is too high compared to the production cost. Specifically, the price of pork in the farm sector currently fluctuates from 37,000 - 38,000 VND/kg and in the household sector fluctuates from 39,000 - 40,000 VND/kg.

Currently, the price of pork is at 50,000 - 51,000 VND/kg.

According to analysis and evaluation by experts and businesses, with Vietnam's livestock farming level, if factors affecting pork production costs are well controlled, the cost of Vietnamese pork can be completely achieved on a mass scale in production at a level of less than 35 thousand VND/kg.

On the other hand, the price of pork in our country is among the highest in the world, with a market size of nearly 100 million people with the habit of consuming pork, which will be the reason why countries with developed pig farming want to export pigs to our country.

In addition, the impact of African swine fever and the US-China trade conflict further increases the risk of pork and pork products from the Americas entering the Vietnamese market.

Price clamps avoid bad effects

In response to the above developments, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Duong - Acting Director of the Department of Animal Husbandry said: Increasing productivity and reducing costs and prices of domestic pork products is an urgent task. In particular, the measure that needs to be implemented immediately in October 2018 is to reduce the selling price of pork to below 50,000 VND/kg.

From a business perspective, Deputy General Director of Dabaco Vietnam Group, Pham Van Hoc, said that fortunately, the price of live pigs in Vietnam is basically equal to the price of pigs in China and about 3,000 - 5,000 VND/kg higher than the price of live pigs in Thailand, limiting the creation of attractive profits for smuggling pigs across the northern border.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reminds businesses to take the right profit, don't "give up the bowl and leave the tray" and then lose the market, when that happens the damage will be much greater.

For sustainable development, Mr. Hoc believes that there is no more sustainable solution than for livestock enterprises to continue to improve production efficiency and reduce product costs so that the selling price to consumers is more reasonable. In addition, there needs to be a pig farming association along with enterprises that have a large enough market share to be able to work with management agencies to regulate the market.

Sharing the same view on this issue, Mr. Le Thanh Phuong, Director of Livestock of Emivest Feedmill Vietnam Co., Ltd., said that in the short term, we should let the price of live pigs move according to the law of supply and demand of the market, and in the long term, we should establish associations to coordinate with state management in regulating and grasping supply and demand. According to Mr. Phuong, it is the consumers who decide the selling price.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said that the recent increase in pork prices, businesses and farmers making profits is a good thing. However, the main concern is that if pork prices remain high and last for a long time, there will be many potential risks of foreign pork flooding in, and then the market will be lost. Therefore, the Minister reminded businesses to take the right profit, not to "give up the bowl and leave the tray" and then lose the market later, when the damage will be much greater.

Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong also requested that businesses operating at all stages from feed, livestock processing, slaughter, processing, and retail consumption, within their capabilities, continue to improve and change, enhance management value, production value, and reduce costs to protect the pig farming industry that is developing very well as it is today.