World Hog news:

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Monday, May 26, 2008Print This Page
Pig Farming Training: May 27 - 28
INDIA - The Veterinary University Training and Research Centre at Kalapatti Pirivu, Saravanampatty, will conduct a free campus-training programme on pig farming, according to The Hindu.



The training, to be held on May 27th and 28th, will include lectures on selection of breeding stock, housing, breeding, feeding and disease management. An interaction session between the participants and entrepreneurs involved in processing and marketing pork will also be part of the programme.

[mikey]

Monday, May 26, 2008Print This Page
Pig Farming Training: May 27 - 28
INDIA - The Veterinary University Training and Research Centre at Kalapatti Pirivu, Saravanampatty, will conduct a free campus-training programme on pig farming, according to The Hindu.



The training, to be held on May 27th and 28th, will include lectures on selection of breeding stock, housing, breeding, feeding and disease management. An interaction session between the participants and entrepreneurs involved in processing and marketing pork will also be part of the programme.

[mikey]

Tuesday, May 27, 2008Print This Page
Earthquake's Impact on China's Swine Production
CHINA - This is a GAIN report on the 8.0 earthquake impacting China's swine production, prepared by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS).

 

Report Highlights
On May 12, 2008, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake shook China’s Sichuan Province. Although the center of the earthquake is not a main swine and pork production area, some major production areas have been impacted. China’s pork imports are expected to remain strong and prices high throughout 2008 due to this disaster, strong domestic consumer demand, short domestic supplies, and the desire to guarantee adequate strategic reserve levels. Pork production is expected to decline two to four percent in the region as a result of the earthquake, putting slight upward pressure on nationwide pork prices, but rebound in six to eight months. The earthquake will likely be a contributing factor to agricultural price increases of 10-20 percent over the summer.


Summary
On May 12, 2008, China’s Sichuan Province experienced a massive earthquake measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale. Although the epicenter of the earthquake is not a main swine and pork production area, some large production areas near the earthquake center were impacted. The immediate impact includes destruction of 12.5 million head of livestock, mostly poultry. Local industry reports that four to five million pigs were impacted, with most being killed by the earthquake, but some also are expected to starve or be slaughtered due to lack of feed supplies. The long-term impact is more difficult to assess and depends on the speed of restoration of water, energy, and transportation services. Post estimates that pork production will decline two to four percent in the region as a result of the earthquake, but is expected to rebound in six to eight months. Initially, local pork prices may decline slightly as swine are liquidated because of the lack feed or water, but prices will rebound and put a slight upward pressure on pork prices nationwide. Post forecasts the earthquake will be a contributing factor to agricultural price increases of 10-20 percent over the summer, but that pork price increases will be limited by government price controls. China’s pork imports are expected to remain strong throughout 2008, especially from the United States, the largest supplier of pork to China.


Strong Earthquake in China
 
The May 12 earthquake’s epicenter was in Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province. China’s Seismological Bureau has upgraded the earthquake from 7.8 to 8.0 magnitude. The U.S. Geological Survey reports the epicenter was located at 31.0 degrees north latitude and 103.4 degrees east longitude. As of May 21, the official death toll is 40,075, with as many as 247,645 people injured, and 32,361 missing, according to Xinhua News. On May 17, the central government said the death toll could reach over 50,000. The earthquake is being called China’s worst disaster since a 1976 earthquake killed more than 250,000 people in Tangshan City, Hebei Province.


Sichuan: China’s Largest Pork Producer
Sichuan is China’s largest swine and pork producing province, and accounts for 12 percent of China’s total swine inventory, 11 percent of slaughter, and 10 percent of total pork production. Sichuan Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Department data shows that Sichuan slaughtered 71.1 million head of swine in 2005 and 74.7 million head in 2006. Pork production in Sichuan was 5.1 MMT in 2005 and 5.4 MMT in both 2006 and 2007, respectively. GDP in the disaster area is reported to account for two percent of China’s total GDP and the damage from the earthquake is expected to slow China’s total GDP growth slightly in 2008.


Earthquake’s Impact on Swine and Pork Production in China
Like the death toll, the immediate impact of the earthquake rises with each reassessment. On May 19, Vice-Minister of Agriculture Wei Chao’an said the impact on agriculture includes the destruction of 12.5 million head of livestock, mostly poultry. According to China’s swine industry, the earthquake has impacted four to five million pigs in the disaster area, with most being killed by the earthquake, but some also expected to starve or be slaughtered due to lack of feed supplies.

Post estimates that pork production will decline two to four percent in the region as a result of the earthquake as the overall earthquake recovery draws resources away from agriculture, but production is expected to rebound in six to eight months. Most of Sichuan’s industrial swine cultivation facilities are located in the southern part of the province. The eight main swine and pork production areas (Chengdu, Mianyang, Nanchong, Ziyang, Dazhou, Yibin, Liangshan, and Luzhou) account for 51 percent of the total swine and pork production in the province.

Local industry reports that swine and pork production in Chengdu and Mianyang have been impacted significantly. Feed and food processing plants in these and other affected areas have halted production due to the disruption of water and electricity supplies. Chengdu and Mianyang are both in the immediate earthquake zone. Mianyang is a swine production base, while Chengdu is important for both swine and feed production. Disruption in the transportation infrastructure has resulted in shortages of feed and other inputs. As transportation facilities, airport, trucks, trains, and warehouses are dedicated to the relief effort, the immediate impact of the earthquake may lead to more protracted problems.

China’s pork production in 2007 is estimated to have decreased nine percent from 2006. Production has suffered from high prices, inflation, natural disasters, and animal diseases. Inflation has pushed grain, labor, and energy costs to new highs, making it more expensive to produce pork. Insufficient disease control in the aftermath of blue ear disease (porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome - PRRS), foot and mouth disease (FMD), and swine fever in the last few years, combined with severe winter snow storms in early 2008, have all negatively impacted China’s swine and pork production. As large numbers of backyard or small-sized operations withdraw from production and commercial sized operations struggle to fill the supply gap, China’s 2008 pork supply is expected to remain very tight as production recovers slowly. Currently, 50 percent of swine are raised in backyard or small-sized farms versus over 70 percent in 2005.

The long-term impact is more difficult to assess in part because it depends on the recovery of key components of the agricultural production infrastructure which is too early to assess. Critical long-term infrastructure needs, include transportation, water, power, irrigation, fuel, disease control, and cold storage. ATO/Chengdu current assessment is that the transportation infrastructure is damaged but intact. Significant transportation resources, including trucks, trains, planes, and warehouses, are being dedicated to the relief and recovery effort. Water resources remain generally available but there are conflicting reports of damage to dams in the affected region that protect against flooding and provide irrigation and hydroelectric power. Electrical power in Sichuan is mostly provided through hydroelectric stations, but the region is also a net coal exporter. Mining coal in the effected region has been suspended. Initial reports are that destruction of industrial facilities threaten to contaminate water supplies with chemical pollutants.


Price Increases and the Earthquake
Initially, local pork prices are expected to decline slightly as swine are liquidated because of lack feed or water. During the relief period, the government is expected to cap pork prices. After the initial earthquake recovery through June, local prices are expected to rebound and put slight upward pressure on pork prices nationwide. While not the dominant factor, the earthquake is expected to be a contributing factor to price increases of 10-20 percent over the summer. ATO/Chengdu currently does not forecast long-term water, electrical, or other transportation or input problems.

China’s consumer price index (CPI) increased by eight percent in the first quarter in 2008. Wholesale prices for staple goods prior to the earthquake were up 32-68 percent over January 2008, and pork prices in April 2008 increased by 68 percent compared with the previous year. Representing nearly 65 percent of per capita meat consumption, the daily increases in pork prices have pressed China’s poor and middle-class families, who spend a larger portion of their income on food.


Impact on Pork Trade
Imports
China’s pork imports in 2008 exploded as a result of strong demand, increased public stock holding, and short domestic supplies. Imports of pork from January to March 2008 increased to U.S. $121.6 million, up from $7.5 million in 2007, while imports of variety pork meat have increased to U.S. $142.6 million, up from $74.2 million during the same period in 2007. U.S. exports to China account for 68 and 24 percent of China’s total pork and variety meat imports, respectively. This does not even include U.S. exports to Hong Kong re-exported to China. Post forecasts the United States will remain the largest supplier to China for the remainder of 2008.
Source: China Statistics





Exports
According to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), Sichuan exported a total of 8,200 MT of pork from January to April 2008, mostly to Hong Kong. Local trade sources confirm that some processing plants in Sichuan have halted exports to Hong Kong as a result the earthquake.

On May 14, AQSIQ coordinated with Hebei, Guangdong, Hunan, Henan, and Shandong provinces to supplement export supplies to Hong Kong by an additional 400-500 metric tons per month, to make up for lost exports from Sichuan. This will insure supplies are tight throughout China, putting upward pressure on pork prices nationwide. As a result, sustained levels of imports in 2008 are expected, especially from the United States, the largest supplier of pork to China. The United States is also the largest supplier of pork to China’s national strategic reserves.

[mikey]

, May 27, 2008Print This Page
APL Urges Consumers to Purchase Aussie Pork
AUSTRALIA - APL (Australian Pork Limited) recently issued a brochure to aid consumers in comprehending product labelling and purchasing Australian pork.



The brochure titled “A guide to purchasing Australian pork products: Know the talk and make sure it is Aussie pork” has been distributed to a wide variety of pig industry representatives as well as butchers across Australia – to assist in spreading the word, reports Farmonline.

APL chief executive officer, Andrew Spencer, says this is just one of a number of initiatives APL is planning to educate consumers about how inadequate labelling laws are affecting Australian pork and its producers.

“Imports of pork continue to enter Australia at an enormous rate," he says.

"Many consumers don’t know that 70pc of the ham and bacon they buy has come from the other side of the world.

“This is a way we can counteract the stress which is being placed on our Australian pork producers, by giving shoppers real choice if they wish to buy Australian.

[mikey]

Tuesday, May 27, 2008Print This Page
Vietnam Pigs Affected by PRRS
VIETNAM - Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), known as "blue ear" disease, has hit 270,000 pigs in Vietnam, or one percent of the country's pig population, since late March, local newspaper Vietnam Economic Times reported Tuesday.



Northern Thanh Hoa province has suffered the biggest loss with nearly 200,000 affected pigs, accounting for nearly 15 percent of the province's pig population, the paper quoted Nguyen Thanh Son, vice director of the country's Department of Animal Health, as saying.

Now, PRRS is hitting 10 Vietnamese provinces, including Thanh Hoa, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Nam Dinh and Ninh Binh in the northern region, and Ha Tinh, Nghe An, Lam Dong and Thua Thien Huein the central region, and Vinh Long in the southern one, according to the department.

PRRS was first recognized in the United States in the mid-1980sand is now present in most pig producing countries. The symptoms include reproductive failure, pneumonia and increased susceptibility to secondary bacterial infection.

[mikey]

Tuesday, May 27, 2008Print This Page
EU Pig Prices: Prices Continue to Surge
EU - The EU slaughter market this week has been affected in a positive way, what with the overall odds appearing to be favorable.



At present, seeing as to how Spain and France have raised their price quotations by 4 cents, the two countries are at the top of the market. While prices in the rest of Europe are constant, Austria, Sweden, Great Britain, Germany and the Netherlands have upped their prices at temperate levels, reports Schweine.net.

Due to this, the Spanish succeeded in closing in on the German price, thus paying the highest prices for pigs at present. Live-pigs sales are reported to be somewhat active throughout Europe and exports towards Eastern Europe are very vivid.

Reports reveal that Belgium slaughter pig sales are going down. Slaughter companies in Eastern Europe have decided on purchasing live pigs from Germany and the Netherlands, in consequence of the last weeks’ boost.

Trend: The current European market has been set by the rising prices, particularly that of Germany. Prices are expected to rise furthermore thanks to the combination of fine weather and less pigs on supply.

[mikey]

Tuesday, May 27, 2008Print This Page
Government to Consult Local Livestock Group Leaders
SEOUL - The government plans to meet local livestock group leaders to come up with a way to improve the the competitiveness of cattle and hog growers as the country moves to fully open its market to U.S. beef.



According to Yonhap News, the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said talks are planned for Wednesday and Thursday with representatives from the Hanwoo Association, the Korea Dairy and Beef Farmers Association and the Korea Swine Association.

It said Vice Minister Jeong Hak-soo will hold talks directly with representatives and touch on various support measures.

Important issues that are to be discussed include modernizing the country's feed and livestock control system, improving the meat quality of domestically raised animals to better compete with cheaper imports, and clamping down on illegal country-of-origin mislabeling of meat by butcher shops, restaurants and catering services.

Because locally raised meat products are more expensive and preferred by consumers, mislabeling foreign imports as local beef and pork has become a common practice among many eateries and small-time butcher shops.

Livestock groups have generally been opposed to opening the market to U.S. beef, and said that they are skeptical about the government's ability to put support measures into practice.

"Livestock growers plan to demand that the government ensures minimum prices for calves and all types of meat cows, as well pay full compensation for animals that have to be culled in case of a brucella outbreak," said Nam Ho-kyung, chairman of the Hanwoo Association.

Under standing rules, once the agriculture minister posts the SPS on the gazette, it will replace the existing pact reached in January 2006.

The old deal only permits boneless beef from animals under 30 months old, while the new pact effectively allows most cuts to be imported without any age limit. Only specified risk materials (SRMs) like brains, tongue, vertebrae marrow, tonsils and part of the intestine are to be banned since they pose the greatest risk of transmitting mad cow disease to humans.

South Korea halted all imports in late 2003 after a mad cow case was reported in the U.S. In May 2007, U.S. beef reached the market again, but all quarantine inspections were halted in October after inspectors found banned SRMs in packages.

[mikey]

Tuesday, May 27, 2008Print This Page
Scottish Government Meets with Pig Sector Representatives
SCOTLAND - Environment Secretary, Richard Lochhead has met with stakeholders in the pig sector to discuss the future sustainability of the industry, asserting that it was crucial to involve the whole food chain in finding solutions to problems facing different parts of the sector.

 

The meeting forms part of a Government drive to further support the industry, with other measures including a £30,000 strategic review into the pig sector to help develop market resilience; setting up a task force to examine the feasibility of proposals to alleviate pressure on the pig sector; and highlighting the difficulties faced by the sector at the highest levels of the European Commission.

The meeting held at the Scottish Parliament was attended by representatives from; the British Hospitality Association, Scottish Retail Consortium, major supermarkets, Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers, Scottish Federation of Meat Traders, Scottish Pig Producers, Scotlean Pigs, NFU Scotland, Quality Meat Scotland, Officer of Fair Trading and Campbell’s Prime Meats.

[mikey]

Friday, June 06, 2008Print This Page
New Pork Processing Regulations to Modernise Industry
CHINA - Zhongpin Inc., China's leading meat and food processing company, has announced that the Chinese government has issued new regulations designed to promote the modernisation of the pork processing industry.



Under the new regulations, effective August 1, 2008, hogs can only be slaughtered by certified processors. In order to become certified, processors must meet national standards regarding abattoir facilities and equipment, water quality, environmental protection and inspection and quarantine. Certified facilities must have an animal epidemic prevention certificate, and separate equipment and areas for pollution-free treatment of ill hogs. In addition, abattoir technicians must have legal health certificates and inspectors must pass a pork product quality inspection examination. Those processors that do not currently meet the new regulations must either become compliant or cease processing pork, with certain exceptions for farmers in remote and rural areas. The new regulations also prevent local governments from restricting the sale of hog products from quarantined and certified facilities outside of the local market.

Zhongpin currently meets or exceeds all requirements under the new regulations. In 2002, Zhongpin was awarded ISO 9001 certification for its abattoirs and pork production operations by the International Organization of Standardization. The company's production lines have passed Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) under Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and Sanitation Standard Operating Procedure (SSOP) in China. In addition, the company maintains all required pork production licenses and certificates from the relevant central and local governments.

"These new standards underscore the Chinese government's efforts to modernize the pork processing industry and encourage competition in local markets," said Mr. Xianfu Zhu, CEO of Zhongpin. "As all of our facilities already meet the stringent requirements of international markets, we view this as an opportunity to increase market share, especially in second- and third-tier cities that have not previously been supplied with high-quality chilled pork."

[mikey]

Friday, June 06, 2008Print This Page
Food Summit Calls Out for More Ag Investment
ROME – The Summit on soaring food prices, convened by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), has concluded with the adoption by acclamation of a declaration calling on the international community to increase assistance for developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and those that are most negatively affected by high food prices.

 

“There is an urgent need to help developing countries and countries in transition expand agriculture and food production, and to increase investment in agriculture, agribusiness and rural development, from both public and private sources,” according to the declaration.

Donors and international financial institutions are urged to provide “balance of payments support and/or budget support to food-importing, low-income countries. Other measures should be considered as necessary to improve the financial situation of the countries in need, including reviewing debt servicing as necessary,” it said.

More funding needed for UN agencies to expand assistance
The final declaration also called on governments to “assure” United Nations agencies “the resources to expand and enhance their food assistance and support safety net programmes to address hunger and malnutrition, when appropriate, through the use of local or regional purchases.”

Speaking about the growing social threat from rising food prices at the opening of the Summit, FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf said: “What is important today is to realize that the time for talking is long past. Now is the time for action.”

World takes action
 
One hundred eighty-one countries participated in the FAO Summit; 42 were represented by a Head of State or Government and 100 by Ministers. 
FAO Assistant Director-General Alexander Mueller said, “Clearly this Summit has decided to act. It has called for both immediate humanitarian assistance to those hardest hit by the current food price crisis and it has taken actions that in the medium term should go a long way in considering the driving forces of food system fragility to shocks in order to reduce the number of hungry people in the world, helping us to meet the World Food Summit and Millennium Development Goals.”

The Declaration calls for “development partners” to participate in and contribute “to international and regional initiatives on soaring food prices” and “assist countries to put in place the revised policies and measures to help farmers, particularly small-scale producers, to increase production and integrate with local, regional and international markets.”

Also recommended by the Declaration are initiatives that “moderate unusual fluctuations” in food grain prices. “We call on relevant institutions to assist countries in developing their food stock capacities and consider other measures to strengthen food security risk management for affected countries.”

Call for increasing the resilience of world’s food systems to climate change
On climate change, the Declaration said: “It is essential to address question of how to increase the resilience of present food production systems to challenges posed by climate change... We urge governments to assign appropriate priority to the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors, in order to create opportunities to enable the world’s smallholder farmers and fishers, including indigenous people, in particular vulnerable areas, to participate in, and benefit from financial mechanisms and investment flows to support climate change adaptation, mitigation and technology development, transfer and dissemination. We support the establishment of agricultural systems and sustainable management practices that positively contribute to the mitigation of climate change and ecological balance.”

More dialogue on biofuels and their relation to food security
On the contentious issue of biofuels, the Declaration said: “It is essential to address the challenges and opportunities posed by biofuels, in view of the world’s food security, energy and sustainable development needs. We are convinced that in-depth studies are necessary to ensure that production and use of biofuels is sustainable in accordance with the three pillars of sustainable development and take into account the need to achieve and maintain global food security…We call upon relevant inter-governmental organizations, including FAO, within their mandates and areas of expertise, with the involvement of national governments, partnerships, the private sector, and civil society, to foster a coherent, effective and results-oriented international dialogue on biofuels in the context of food security and sustainable development needs.”

Successful Doha development round and improved trade opportunities
According to the Declaration, WTO members reaffirmed their commitment to the rapid and successful conclusion of the Doha development agenda and reiterated their willingness to reach a comprehensive and ambitious result that would be condusive to improving food security in developing countries.

“We encourage the international community to continue its efforts in liberalizing international trade in agriculture by reducing trade barriers and market distorting policies,” said the Declaration, adding that addressing these measures “will give farmers, particularly in developing countries, new opportunities to sell their products on world markets and support their efforts to increase productivity and production.”

One hundred eighty-one countries participated in the FAO Food Summit – 43 were represented by their Head of State or Government and 100 by high-level Ministers. Sixty Non-governmental and Civil Society Organizations were present as well. Overall, 5 159 people attended -- 1 298 of them were journalists covering the event.

[mikey]

Monday, June 09, 2008Print This Page
MARD to Launch Clean Pork Production Pilot Plan
VIET NAM - The Livestock Breeding Department of the MARD (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) has announced plans to launch a pilot project on the production of clean pork by the end of 2008 in collaboration with some large-scale livestock breeding farms in three of the country's regions.



According to VNS, the programme is part of the agriculture sector’s strategy to develop a stable livestock raising industry as required recently by the Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai. The programme was created partly in response to the recent pig epidemic that occured in many of the country’s provinces.

Hoang Kim Giao, head of the Livestock Breeding Department, said that the pilot programme would be carried out before the ministry develops a raising model to be reproduced as a measure to increase the production of clean pork. If approved, the model will be implemented nationwide next year.

The pilot will cover aspects from the design and construction of breeding facilities to the breeding selection process to choosing suitable diets in accordance with each of the animal’s growing phases. Aspects like sanitation, environmental hygiene, disease prevention measures and safe production will also be part of the model.

The Livestock Breeding Department will issue certifications of safe production to farm owners and production units that meet the aforementioned criteria.

Because the project will face certain difficulties – since a large part of the country’s farmers have been raising livestock at small-scale levels – the first stage will only be implemented at large-scale farms. The deparment will later create a network between these farms and small farms whereby small-farm owners can visit and learn from these large-scale farm owners.

[mikey]

Tuesday, June 10, 2008Print This Page
Stomach Ulcer Bug Identified in Pigs
BELGIUM - Researchers from Belgium's Gent University have sequestered a new bacterium Helicobacter suis sp. nov. found in the stomachs of pigs through the use of an innovative technique, one that offers hope to people suffering from stomach ulcers.



A new cultivation method was successfully applied for the in vitro isolation of a hitherto uncultured spiral Helicobacter species associated with ulceration of the non-glandular stomach and gastritis in pigs and formerly described as ‘Candidatus Helicobacter suis’.

Three isolates, HS1T, HS2 and HS3, were subcultured from the stomach mucosa of three pigs after slaughter and were analysed using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The novel isolates grew on biphasic culture plates or very moist agar bases in microaerobic conditions and exhibited urease, oxidase and catalase activities.

Sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, the 23S rRNA gene, the partial hsp60 gene and partial ureAB genes confirmed that the strains present in the gastric mucosa of pigs constituted a separate taxon, corresponding to ‘Helicobacter heilmannii’ type 1 strains as detected in the gastric mucosa of humans and other primates.

For all genes sequenced, the highest sequence similarities were obtained with Helicobacter felis, Helicobacter bizzozeronii and Helicobacter salomonis, Helicobacter species isolated from the gastric mucosa of dogs and cats, which have also been detected in the human gastric mucosa and which are commonly referred to as ‘Helicobacter heilmannii’ type 2. SDS-PAGE of whole-cell proteins of strains HS1T, HS2 and HS3 differentiated them from other Helicobacter species of gastric origin. The results of the polyphasic taxonomic analysis confirmed that the novel isolates constitute a novel taxon corresponding to ‘Helicobacter heilmannii’ type 1 strains from humans and to ‘Candidatus H. suis’ from pigs. The name Helicobacter suis sp. nov. is proposed for the novel isolates with the type strain HS1T (=LMG 23995T=DSM 19735T).

[mikey]

Friday, June 13, 2008Print This Page
WA Pork Industry Faces Danger of Shutdown
AUSTRALIA - The Western Australian pork industry, worth $100 annually, is on the verge of being shut down because of the gas crisis. One of the State's major pig abattoirs has warned its plant could close within a fortnight.



According to the West Australian, consumers were told to brace for shortages of fresh pork after Craig Mostyn Group, which processes almost all of the State’s pigs at its Linley Valley plant, said yesterday it may suspend operations because of cuts to liquid CO2 supplies which are needed to kill pigs.

The plant had 12 days supply before it would be forced to shut, affecting up to 220 staff, unless it found alternative supplies.

Producers moved quickly to call a crisis meeting with the State Government yesterday, warning the closure would cripple the industry and force farmers to shoot livestock.

Craig Mostyn Group chief executive David Lock said the plant required two tonnes of liquid CO2 to process 10,500 pigs each week.

WA Pork Producers Association executive officer Russell Cox said the plant’s closure would force already struggling pig farmers into further turmoil and would threaten key export markets.

“This would probably signal the death of the WA pig industry and the loss of hundreds of jobs on-farm, in abattoirs and in associated industries,” he said in a letter to WA Agriculture Minister Kim Chance.

Mr Cox said pigs would have to be destroyed at the farms because they could not be processed beyond agreed, contracted market weights.

View the West Australian

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Friday, June 13, 2008Print This Page
Essential Fat Gene Research in Pigs Conducted
UK - Research is being conducted for the identification of fat gene markers which allows geneticists to prognosticate how and when fat is laid down in pig carcases.



According to Farmers Guardian, PhD student Kate Fowler, based with the biosciences department at the University of Kent, is undertaking the project, sponsored by JSR Genetics.

Dr Grant Walling, director of research and genetics at JSR said: “There are cultural variations in meat preferences. For example, Asian markets prefer a fattier meat to those in the West.

“The fat markers identified will allow geneticists to predict how, where and when fat is likely to be deposited, helping producers to tailor products to specific retail markets and devise detailed feeding regimes.”

[mikey]

Tuesday, June 17, 2008Print This Page
Production Resumed in Sichuan Province
CHINA - Zhongpin Inc. has announced that it resumed production at the Deyang plant, located in Cangshan County, Sichuan Province, which was affected by an earthquake.



The facility has resumed 80% of prior-earthquake utilization level. During the recovery period, Zhongpin continued supply to customers under contract with the Deyang plant using its production facility in Zhumadian, Henan Province.

"We are glad to resume production at the Deyang plant. At the time of the disaster, we focused on providing aid and assisting in the relief efforts. We continued to pay salaries to our employees during the period of suspended production," commented Mr. Xianfu Zhu, Chief Executive Officer of Zhongpin. "The Deyang plant is now in process of a speedy recovery and we will return to our normal production level by the end of this month. We are also confident in achieving our fiscal year 2008 financial targets."

On May 12, 2008, Zhongpin's processing facility in Deyang, Sichuan Province was adversely impacted by an earthquake. Water and electricity supplies were cut off during the earthquake and resumed on the morning of May 14, 2008. There was no loss of life at the plant, but there was some damage to workshops and equipment at the facility. The Deyang plant has annual capacity of 45,000 metric tons, accounting for 12.5% of Zhongpin's total capacity of chilled and frozen pork.