World Hog news:

[mikey]

NZ Pork Import Plan Gets Industry Worried
NEW ZEALAND - A proposal to allow the importation of raw pork meat from overseas could devastate the industry, southern business groups and farmers said.



Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry-Biosecurity New Zealand has released a draft "import health standard" report that would allow consumer-ready cuts of uncooked pork into the country.

But the pork industry is appealing the import rule change, fearing it could lead to the introduction of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS).

Business and Professional Women Incorporated Southland president Anne McCracken said allowing the product into the country was an unacceptable and unnecessary risk.

Southland was an agricultural province and any threat to the industry needed to be addressed seriously, she said.

"The moment you bring it (PRRS) in, how are you going to get it out again?" she said.

"I don't want it to be manageable, I don't want it to happen at all."

Former Thornbury pig farmer Nathan Ronald said the proposed rule change was a real concern and the ministry should have learnt its lesson in 2004 when another disease, post-weaning multi-systematic wasting syndrome, made its way into the South Island.

Mr Ronald had been considering re-entering the pig farming business but if the import laws were relaxed he would have to reassess the risk, he said.

According to Stuff.co.nz, biotechnology company Living Cell Technologies was granted approval in June to begin clinical trials involving the transplanting of cells from Auckland Island pigs into people with diabetes.

The pigs are housed in a disease-free facility in Awarua and the research could potentially inject millions of dollars into the Southland economy.

Living Cell Technologies chief operating officer Paul Tan said there would be little risk of the Auckland Island pigs contracting PRRS because of the isolated conditions they were kept in.

However, he could not see the reason for allowing the importation of uncooked pork as New Zealand had a sufficient supply already, he said.

Ministry animal imports and exports group manager Matthew Stone said the questions raised by the groups would be addressed by the independent review but was confident the measures proposed would adequately manage the risk.

"Primarily, it comes down to restricting imports to tissues that do have a low level of infectivity ... and importing those products in a form that minimises their use as waste," he said.

[mikey]

Pressure on Slaughtering Space
UK - As expected the upcoming short week has put pressure on slaughtering space coupled with a further slip in the value of the DAPP which now stands at 152.28p, writes Peter Crichton.

As a result spot buyers did not have to search very far to get the volumes they needed and although most producers are reasonably well on top of their numbers, some pigs were inevitably rolled and it may take a couple of weeks before the backlog is eaten up.

Spot bacon quotes today tended to be in the 140p region at the heaviest end of the weight range on a 14-probe with a few pence more being offered elsewhere, but generally on a tighter spec.

Not much of a premium for lighter weights and with feed prices where they are it is still generally in producers’ interests to add as much weight as they can.

Recent improvements in the value of the euro have helped to put up the cost of imports which are still undercutting the British market to a significant extent and the euro closed worth 88p on Friday compared with 86.2p a week ago.

The only real action seen in the market today was in the cull sow sector where despite the short week ahead export abattoirs were continuing to look for increased numbers, despite relatively static cull values in Europe.

Most prices tended to be in the 116–118p region with a few coppers more for large numbers according to specification.

The weaner market continues to suffer from the effects of the slow down in clearing finished pig numbers, a delayed finish to harvest/straw carting and a slightly less than optimistic outlook for finished pig prices this autumn.

As a result weaner prices are continuing to ease with 30kg values tending to be in the £50-£54/head range according to quality.

Reports of slight rises in the value of feed wheat mainly due to currency adjustments rather than the crop being worth more money are also a slightly negative factor for weaner buyers to digest and may help to explain why weaner prices are on the drift.

Comparisons with a year ago still make very favourable reading throughout all sectors of the market as follows.

Week 4 August 2008
DAPP 136.43p
Spot bacon 135.86p
Weaner values £42.98
Wheat £111.00/t
Euro 80.70p

Week 4 August 2009
DAPP 152.28p
Spot bacon 142.00p
Weaner values £54.33
Wheat £88.00/t
Euro 86.2p

[mikey]

A/H1N1 Detected in Live Pigs Imported into Singapore
SINGAPORE - Singapore's Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) has detected the pandemic A(H1N1) virus in some pigs imported into Singapore from Indonesia's Pulau Bulan.



The AVA said that the pigs were imported into Singapore from Indonesia's Pulau Bulan, but added that the pork available here is safe for consumption, because the A/H1N1 virus is not transmitted through the handling and consumption of pork and pork products, according to the TV broadcaster Channel NewsAsia.

The AVA said it would take part in a comprehensive disease surveillance program, led by the Indonesian authority, to identify and isolate affected pig houses.

The AVA also noted that Singapore has adequate sources of pork supplies from 25 countries. Singapore's import of 1,000 pigs daily from Pulau Bulan constitutes some 20 per cent of the total pork consumed here.

Singapore reported its first confirmed human case of the flu A/H1N1 on 27 May. The country's first A/H1N1 related death case was reported on 18 July.

[mikey]

WPC REPORT - Chinese Consumers Flu Virus Fears
CHINA - A quarter of the Chinese population believe that the A/H1N1 flu virus can be caught through eating pig meat.



These were the conclusions of a survey carried out for the US Meat Export Federation in China and reported to the World Pork Conference in Qingdao today (Thursday).

Joel Haggard, Senior Vice President for the Asia Pacific Region of the USMEF told the conference that concerns still remained among Chinese consumers over the A/H1N1 virus.

He said the survey was carried out for the USMEF by the Chinese market research company Sinotrace to discover whether China had experienced similar reaction to the outbreak as in the US and Mexico earlier this year.

He said that at the time the US consumers initially shunned pork.

The survey in China found that at the time of the outbreak, 64 per cent of those who replied to the survey refrained from eating pork during the outbreak.

Now 27.1 per cent are still not eating pork and about a quarter of those surveyed believed that A/H1N1 flu virus could be contracted through eating pork.

Mr Haggard said that the continued reaction to the H1N1 outbreak could have been a strong contributor to the drop in pig meat prices in China this year.

[mikey]

China Becomes Top Global Meat Producer
CHINA - China has become the world's leading meat producer, with 29 per cent of the global total output last year, an industry official said Thursday.



Last year, China's meat production topped 72.69 million tons, up 6 per cent from the previous year, Deng Fujiang, vice president of the China Meat Association, told the World Pork Conference which opened Thursday morning in eastern China's coastal city of Qingdao.

Of the total, 63.5 per cent was pork, he said, adding nearly half of the world's pork last year had been produced in China.

China is a major consumer of meat products as well. It imported 1.84 million tons but exported only 742,000 tons last year, said Mr Deng.

Patrick J. Moore, president of the International Meat Secretariat, said he expected increasing worldwide meat consumption and international trade despite the impact of the global economic downturn and the A(H1N1) flu epidemic.

Global meat consumption is projected to expand by almost 2 per cent annually from now to 2018 to more than 320 million tons, 37.5 per cent of which would be pig meat, he said, citing an OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)-FAO (UN Food and Agriculture Organization) Agricultural Outlook report issued in June.

[mikey]

WPC REPORT - Pork Industry Facing up to Challenges
CHINA - The pig meat sector is facing three major challenges, writes senior editor, Chris Harris at the World Pork Conference in Qingdao.



The President of the International Meat Secretariat, Paddy Moore, opening the conference said that the industry was confronting problems associated with the economic down turn, the consequences of the A/H1N1 flu outbreak and questions over sustainability and the environment.

Mr Moore said that the global economic crisis has had a severe impact on the structure of the industry, production, trade, prices and consumption.

He added that there were concerns in the industry that the A/H1N1 flu virus was affecting consumption patterns globally.

"At the OIE General Session in Paris in May this year, I underlined to delegates our concern at the unfounded allegations linking A/H1N1 influenza to the consumption of pork," he told the conference.

"Indeed, I expressed to them our gratitude to the OIE as well as the World Health Organisation and FAO, for their joint statements affirming that pork products were not a source of infection and that influenza viruses were not known to be transmissible through eating pork or other food products derived from pigs."

Mr Moore added that the third challenge for the pig meat sector was the question of achieving sustainable production and reducing the impacts of production on the environment.

He said that the industry needs to develop effective strategies to meet the challenges of the environmental impact of extensive livestock production on the environment, water supply and the use of fuel particularly in the light of the forthcoming international climate talks in Copenhagen.

However, Mr Moore added that despite the challenges, facing the industry worldwide meat consumption and international trade are increasing.

He said that global meat consumption is forecast to grow by two per cent per year up to 2018 to more than 320 million tonnes, with 37.5 per cent of the growth coming from the pig meat sector.

In the Asia Pacific area, pig meat consumption is forecast to grow at a faster rate than any other meat," he said.

"The theme of the conference - Modernisation of the World Pork Industry - Science, Health, Stability and Sustainability - not only implies being aware of the challenges and opportunities presented to our industry, but addressing them both nationally and internationally through the IMS," he concluded.

The conference, which is organised by the International Meat Secretariat, China Meat Association and the Qingdao Municipal Giovernment has attracted around 500 delegates and speakers from organisations and companies around the world. It runs from 3-4 September.

[mikey]

Feed Shortage Ahead for EU Farmers
EU - The Commissioner has warned agriculture ministers that disputes over genetically modified (GM) crops between Member States will cause imminent feed shortages.


Farmers face an imminent shortage of animal feed because a handful of countries are blocking the approval of GM crops, warns the European Union's Agriculture Commissioner.

Financial Times reports that Mariann Fischer Boel told agriculture ministers that breaking a log-jam of GM organisms applications would throw a lifeline to dairy and pig farmers who face high prices for non-GM feed.

Farmers' group, Copa-Cogeca, estimates that non-GM feed will add almost €1 billion to the cost of raising livestock this year.

The EU imports nearly two-thirds of the 33.5 million tonnes of the soybean meal used by the food and livestock industry annually.

Some 200,000 tonnes of US soybeans have been blocked at EU ports this year because they contained trace amounts of two varieties of GM maize that have been declared safe by EFSA but have not yet been approved by member states.

The situation has been exacerbated this year by a drought in Argentina, one of the EU's largest suppliers, which has hit soybean output.

Financial Times reports that the UK and the Netherlands – supporters of GMOs – were among a group of eight member states that expressed support for Ms Fischer Boel's remarks, according to a person involved in the discussions. Austria, a GM opponent, and Poland expressed scepticism.

Opposition from a handful of EU member states has repeatedly stalled the final approval of GM products that have otherwise been cleared by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

The Commission says continued resistance to GMOs could see European farmers lose market share to imported GM-fed meat.

"The worst case scenario is that eventually it becomes so expensive to import protein that our own guys go out of business and we end up importing meat from countries fed on the same GMOs not approved for use here," a Commission official said.

Ms Fischer Boel's comments came as dairy farmers rallied in Brussels, demanding more support amid a prolonged slump in milk prices. France and other countries have also repeatedly asked for financial aid for pork producers, arguing that they are suffering from low prices.

The Financial Times report concludes that Commission officials have indicated that they are unable to provide more financial assistance after directing billions of euros in aid to the sector through emergency payments and market interventions.

[mikey]

[10 September 2009] President of the International Meat Secretariat, Patrick Moore said during the opening ceremony of the World Pork Conference that the pork industry was facing problems associated with the economic down turn, the consequences of the A(H1N1) flu outbreak and questions over sustainability and the environment. Despite the challenges facing the industry worldwide, meat consumption and international trade are increasing, adding that global meat consumption is forecast to grow by 2% per year up to 2018 to more than 320 million tonnes, with 37.5% of the growth coming from the pig meat sector. In the Asia Pacific region area, pig meat consumption is forecast to grow at a faster rate than any other meat.

[mikey]

H1N1: Govt Urges Pig Breeders to Enhance Biosecurity
MALAYSIA - The country's pig breeders are urged to enhance the biosecurity levels at their farm to curb the Influenza A(H1N1) outbreak.



Perak State Health Committee chairman Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon said each breeder must give serious attention to this matter and be more responsible in this aspect.

"The comprehension and knowledge among breeders on the disease control and the way it is spread is still low. We want breeders to think of their respective roles and always refer to us about what they can do," he told reporters after opening the Awareness Seminar on H1N1 Control in the Pig Breeding Industry here, Thursday.

He said breeders must also monitor their level of personal health as the second wave of the outbreak was predicted to cause more deaths.

He said the state government had passed the Pig Farming Control Enactment to control and structure the pig industry to become enviromental and public friendly.

According to Bernama.com, Dr Mah also suggested that the breeders adopted the organic farming method to ensure the meat marketed were free of H1N1 virus.

"Recently, Singapore was reported to have a H1N1 case in their pig farm. Three pigs were imported from Pulau Bulan, Indonesia and were found postive of the outbreak and this issue has come to our attention as we are worried about the possibility of the pig farms in Malaysia being affected by the H1N1 outbreak," he said.

[mikey]

Victoria's Pigs Cleared of H1N1 Flu
AUSTRALIA - Pigs affected by the A(H1N1) flu in the Goulburn Valley, have recovered from the virus.



The piggery at near Shepparton in northern Victoria was placed in quarantine three weeks ago, after breeding females pigs got sick.

The Department of Primary Industries says all of the pigs at the property are healthy and have not had flu symptoms for about a week.

According to ABC, the piggery will remain in quarantine for another two weeks, in line with national health guidelines.

[mikey]

China's weakened demand for imported pork amid concern over A (H1N1) flu is adding a further blow to the recession-stricken industry in the US, which has seen continuous losses over the past two years, according to Jon Caspers, Chairman of the US Meat Export Federation (USMEF), who spoke at the fifth World Pork Conference of the International Meat Secretariat (IMS) in Qingdao, Shandong province. China imported 56,785 tonnes of pork from the US in the first half of 2009, down 70% from the same period last year. A recent survey by the USMEF on Chinese consumers showed that 22% of those surveyed still believe that the H1N1 virus can be contracted by eating pork even months after the initial outbreak. Last year, China produced 46.2 million tonnes of pork or 45% of the world’s total output. Despite China's high self-sufficiency in pork production, it still imports a considerable amount of pork each year from the US, the EU and Canada, the top three pork exporters to China.

[mikey]

New Disease Threat?
EU - There were reports of a new unexplained syndrome of diarrhoea in young piglets from Denmark and France at the first European Symposium on Porcine Health Management in Copenhagen at the end of August.

 

Mortality rates of up to 40 per cent in suckling piglets will strike terror in the hearts of pig farmers who have previously been through the devastation that followed the similar first reports of what we now know as PRRS and PMWS.

The cause of the syndrome is unknown and farmers and vets have been struggling to contain the disease with no effective treatment, vaccination or control measures at this stage. In Brittany 15 to 20 per cent of herds have already experienced the condition, and the disease has mainly affected the high performing well-managed herds. Hyperprolificacy, overuse of antibiotics, chilling in the creep area, nutritional factors and various microorganisms have all been suggested as possible factors.

The British pig industry can do without this disease syndrome sweeping through the national pig herd. Imports of pigs and pig products probably represent the greatest threat of introduction. Until the syndrome is better understood and effective control measures developed, national and individual herd biosecurity levels will need to be at their most robust to defend the industry from this threat.

[mikey]

EU Pig Prices: Further Reductions in Prices
EU - In many member countries, the European slaughter pig market this week presents downward trends, showing various price levels.

 

The pressure on the markets made prices range from remaining unchanged in Denmark to being decreased by up to 8 cents in Italy. The quantities on offer of pigs mature for slaughter are far too large for demand for pork to cope with them. The prices remained on an unchanged level altogether in Great Britain and Sweden, however as a result of changes in currency exchange rates, a price increase and a price reduction respectively arose.

The Dutch, observing a 5-cents’ price decrease, say this must be attributed to the ending barbecue season and the related price decline as to neck. With regard to the German price, there is talking about further downward price corrections, after the farmers did "panic sales", thus bringing more pigs mature for slaughter to the market. The prices in Denmark remained unchanged for the sixth time in succession.

Trend: The quantities of pigs mature for slaughter to be on offer is expected to decrease in the course of the ongoing week, so prices will be able to get stabilised. However, meat proves to continue to be difficult to be sold inland. In contrast, exports – of live pigs in particular – still are run on a high level.

[mikey]

Years of Poor Maize Harvests Hits Pig, Poultry Sectors
ZIMBABWE - A decline in maize yields is hampering poultry and pig production.



Low maize yields have negatively affected stock feed manufacturing resulting in decreased poultry and pig production over the past few years, according to a Pig Industry Board official.

The Herald of Zimbabwe reports that low maize yields have negatively affected stock feed manufacturing resulting in decreased poultry and pig production over the past few years, a Pig Industry Board official has said.

PIB advisory officer, Tamo Hove Muza, said the sow herd had decreased to 8,000 from 18,000 due to the feed shortages.

He said pig producers had resorted to survival diets while others had completely stopped production.

"Now that most farmers had meaningful yields last season, the situation has slightly improved," he said.

Mr Muza said the removal of the Grain Marketing Board's monopoly on maize had also resulted in a number of pig producers being able to buy enough grain for stock feeds from fellow farmers.

"The current breeding stock can not meet the demand as many producers now want to produce," said Mr Muza.

The Pig Producers Association was formed recently to work towards addressing issues affecting the pig industry. Mr Muza said the association was formed following the realisation that other sectors of agriculture such as tobacco, dairy and horticulture had associations that advocated for improvement of services.

The Herald reports information from chicken breeder, Hubbard Zimbabwe, indicating that the poultry industry had the capacity to produce one million-day-old chicks per week but was currently operating at 20 per cent of capacity.

Since March this year, Hubbard Zimbabwe started re-building its broiler breeding stocks and this is expected to take 64 weeks before the harvest of the first day-old chicks with the situation expected to improve in the second quarter of 2010.

[mikey]

Piglet's Posture is Best Guide to its Comfort
NORWAY - Piglets tend to make changes in posture rather than huddling in order to keep comfortable, according to research published by G. Vasdal of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences and co-authors.



The objective of the study published in the Cambridge journal, Animal, was to investigate the effect of infrared (IR) temperature on thermoregulatory behaviour in suckling piglets in the first three weeks after farrowing..

A total of 10 piglets from each of the 16 litters were exposed to recommended IR temperature conditions at 1, 2 and 3 weeks of age, with a mild offset (4°C) in IR temperature during the first experiment and a more challenging offset (8°C) during the second experiment.

Digital photos were taken when all piglets had settled in the creep area, and the lying posture and huddling behaviour were analysed. A lying posture score and a huddling score was calculated by multiplying the number of piglets in each category with a given value for each category, based on different lying postures and different degrees of huddling behaviour.

With a 4°C change in IR temperature, the piglets tended to alter their lying posture, while an 8°C change had a significant effect on lying posture (P<0.01).

A change in IR temperature of 4°C had no effect on the degree of huddling. The huddling score decreased significantly with 8°C change in IR temperature (P<0.05).

Postural changes, rather than changes in degree of huddling were the preferred thermoregulatory strategy for suckling piglets, concluded Vasdal and co-authors.

Reference
Vasdal G., E.F. Wheeler and K.E. Bøe. 2009. Effect of infrared temperature on thermoregulatory behaviour in suckling piglets. animal 3: 1449-1454. doi:10.1017/S1751731109990309