World Hog news:

[mikey]

Zero-tolerance Could Make Pig Farming Untenable
EU - High prices and supply bottlenecks in Europe due to the low-level-presence of non-authorised GM grains may force livestock farmers to relocate outside the European Union, according to a new study from the European Union’s Joint Research Centre.


The Global Pipeline of New GM Crops investigates the trade implications of asynchronous approvals of GM crops. This is where countries around the world approve GMs at different times, making it impossible for shippers to comply with zero-tolerance rules, such as exist in the European Union.

Zero-tolerance has seen the price of November-April soya rise £15 this week.

Currently only 30 or so GMOs are cultivated worldwide. The situation will be much more difficult by 2015, when some 120 GM crops are expected to be available and approved in many parts of the world, warns the report.

Participants in the study suggest solutions such as a low level marketing threshold (where a small quantity of non-approved GMin consignments would be permissible) and streamlining the regulatory system so there is mutual recognition of risk assessments and guidelines.

The latest case of zero-tolerance causing grains to be rejected at the European Union border involves unauthorised GM maize in a consignment of soyameal from the United States.

The maize in question is MON88017. The European Food Safety Authority says it is safe but its proposed authorisation will not be put to Europe’s Standing Committee on Food Chain and Animal Health until July 22 — and so may not be approved in the European Union until the end of the year.

Some leading grain traders have said they will no longer ship soya from North America to the European Union as the risk of shipments being blocked is too serious.

As stocks in Argentina and Brazil, the two main sources of soya, are significantly lower than last year, feed industry representatives have warned that European Union feed prices may increase significantly at very short notice.

The Brussels health and consumer affairs directorate was supposed to come up with a technical solution to this problem but apart from statements about accelerating the approvals procedure, nothing has been published and nothing is expected this summer.

[mikey]

Pork Sellers Ask Council to Leave Them Alone
MALAYSIA - Teruntum assemblyman Chang Hong Seong has reasurred pork sellers at the wet market that their stalls will be maintained in its present premises.



"I was told that the local council had allocated 38 stalls but they were not fully utilised.

"I spoke to the pork sellers who cited several reasons for the under-utilisation of the premises," he said when met recently.

According to The Star, Mr Chang said among the reasons were that some of them had switched to become mobile traders, stiff competition from supermarkets and the reluctance of second generations to inherit the trade.

He said however, business was still flourishing.

"They can still make ends meet and are willing to continue trading and urged the local council to leave them alone."

[mikey]

Opposite Directions for Pork and Chicken Sales
SOUTH KOREA - Pork has been many Koreans' favorite source of protein for many years, particularly for those who cannot afford pricier homegrown beef, known as "hanwoo." But its consumption has declined sharply over the past few months since the outbreak of the H1N1 influenza A, formerly known as swine flu, across the globe.



According to The Korea Times, with a people associating possible health hazards with pork consumption, many households here have switched to poultry for their major protein source, prompting livestock raisers to breed more chicken.

According to the National Statistical Office (NSO), the number of pigs raised by farming households reached 9.04 million nationwide in the second quarter of the year, down 1.4 per cent from the previous quarter. But the number of chickens bred for meat stood at 100 million as of the end of June, up 45.5 per cent from three months earlier. The number of chickens bred for eggs also rose 1.5 per cent to 906,000.

"Because of surging international livestock feed costs, coupled with the widespread of the H1N1 influenza A in April, pork consumption both at home and abroad plunged even though it has recently rebounded to some extent on the easing of public concerns over the disease. The falling consumption has slashed pork prices and made many farmers abandon pig breeding," an NSO official said.

On the other hand, a growing number of consumers are turning to chicken as an alternative to pork because of the latter's possible health risks and rising temperature toward the summer, the official said. "Increasing seasonal demand for chicken in summer has also encouraged livestock raisers to breed more chicken."

The number of hanwoo and other types of cattle raised for meat jumped 4.8 per cent to 2.6 million in June from March, the steepest increase since the statistical office began compiling the data.

Despite higher prices, more Koreans are choosing to eat homegrown beef, shunning away from cheaper American and other imported beef after the mad cow disease controversy last year, indicating that local consumers have become richer and more health-conscious. The number of milk cows fell 2 per cent to 439,000 over the three-month period.

[mikey]

Pork Commentary: Russia Again
RUSSIA - This week, Jim Long says that there will be no comment on North American markets this week "as we have a lesser clue than normal on what is happening."
 
This past week, like President Obama, we were in Russia. So there is no confusion, we did not travel in his entourage. We did visit the Kremlin but did not get the same level of reception as President Obama. Fortunately, we did get our temperature checked when we landed in Moscow for H1N1. I wonder if President Obama had his temperature taken by the Russian authorities? It is good to have people worried about your health! I have to admit, at temperature taking time no one jumped up and announced that we are in the swine industry.

Observations
Russia’s slaughter price for market hogs continues to be extraordinary. Extraordinary to us is $1.15 US live weight or about $1.40 US lean per pound. We project any decent producer in Russia is making $100.00 plus per head. Wouldn’t we all love to have that experience?


High hog profitability is stimulating Russian swine expansion. There are several existing and new entrants planning on major hog building construction.


All operations that we have met are farrow to finish. There is no feeder pig market of any significance. The largest producers grow a significant amount of their own grain and have their own feed mills.


Expansion will not happen fast in Russia. It takes about a year and a half to get necessary permits for construction of facilities.


Russia is currently importing approximately 30 per cent of its pork needs. Producers in other countries would think that it would be a good idea for Russia to import more pork. Russia currently has pork import quotas and permits that restrict imports. From conversations we had in Russia, we expect import regulations to stay in place. It appears to us it is Russian government policy to achieve pork self sufficiency. To do that we calculate one million new sow places have to be built. The quickest way to get expansion is to have producers make lots of money (getting done). As long as Russia is not a member of WTO (World Trade Organization) they do not have to play with international trade rules.


There are about 150 million people in Russia. They like pork. As per capita income increases domestic demand will increase. Chicken is the only competition. Beef is not a factor.


USA corn ethanol policy continues to bring Russian farm land into production. Higher global grain prices are one heck of stimulus. The going rate for farm land is $15.00 US per hectare (2.2 acres) for a 49 year lease. We saw thousands of acres of land not under cultivation yet. Many of the groups entering hog production have 10’s of thousands of hectares and see it as a way to market their grain. When we see the land not yet under cultivation we wonder if USA grain farmers can compete against land rent of $7.00 per acre and expect to get $5.00 a bushel from corn? The old adage high prices are the surest cure to high prices comes to mind.


When we were in Russia we saw the President of John Deere being interviewed. He was with the Obama entourage. Deere plans on building equipment in Russia. It is a way to beat equipment custom duties but also a reflection of Deere’s belief in Russia’s future in grain production.


Russian agriculture had little investment for thirty years. As you travel the country side ruins after ruins of livestock facilities sit abandoned. In the 80’s and early 90’s when the Russian economy transcended from communist to private enterprise the industry imploded. Now there is a rapid quest to bring Russian agriculture forward with all of the latest technology. Whether it is tractors, combines, swine equipment, genetics, etc… That is why John Deere is investing in Russia.


Russia has to make a rapid transformation. After 80 years of communism they have had less than a decade to evolve to capitalism. There are no corporate or family dynasties of multiple generations. All ownership is one generation deep. It is a nation of first generation entrepreneurs; they are aggressive and in a big hurry. It is in many ways refreshing and absolutely unique.


All reports in Russia gave high marks to President Obama’s visit. It appears that there was much progress on some customs issues. During the visit Russia approved more US states for pork imports to Russia. In our opinion, the USA has much in common with Russia. Both are big with lots of natural resources, both are nationalistic, and both believe in scale. There is more in common than not. We know we have never done business with people we don’t talk to. I’m not sure countries are any different.

Author: Jim Long, President & CEO, Genesus Genetics 

[mikey]

EU Pig Prices: Desired Price Increase Fails to Appear
EU - The European slaughter pig market appears to be inconsistent this week.

 

After German producers had hoped for prices to increase last week as a result of low quantities of pigs mature for slaughter being on offer, they now have to settle for an unchanged quotation. In view of the poor margin with meat sales and of vociferous complaints from the slaughter companies, no price increases could be put through. This was followed suit by the Netherlands, Belgium and Austria.

The quotations in France, Denmark, Great Britain and Sweden tended downwards. Resulting from that, the corrected quotations reported on from Germany, the Netherlands and France have come to be on almost the same level. That means that France was not able to maintain the previous week’s price gap. Spain as well suffered from the northern European slaughter companies’ pressure. The Spanish slaughter companies therefore reduced their activities. Relief is brought about for the producers by the holiday season and by a flourishing export business which result in a moderate price increase.

Trend: With the numbers of live pigs on offer remaining low, the prices are expected to remain steady at least. If the weather improves as announced, the meat business might be given the stimulus needed and make the prices increase. Besides, the first holiday-makers are returning to Germany, stimulating the domestic meat consumption.

Week D NL DK B F PL CZ IT ESP AUT GB SWE IR
22 Week 1,466 € 1,445 € 1,322 € 1,427 € 1,367 € 1,448 € 1,544 € 1,278 € 1,490 € 1,450 € 1,661 € 1,260 € 1,501 €
23 Week 1,416 € 1,416 € 1,376 € 1,366 € 1,374 € 1,457 € 1,572 € 1,342 € 1,531 € 1,450 € 1,684 € 1,245 € 1,501 €
24 Week 1,406 € 1,396 € 1,376 € 1,366 € 1,377 € 1,444 € 1,567 € 1,342 € 1,532 € 1,390 € 1,674 € 1,207 € 1,501 €
25 Week 1,456 € 1,435 € 1,376 € 1,403 € 1,400 € 1,460 € 1,583 € 1,405 € 1,560 € 1,440 € 1,723 € 1,245 € 1,501 €
26 Week 1,496 € 1,483 € 1,404 € 1,440 € 1,449 € 1,521 € 1,640 € 1,456 € 1,611 € 1,480 € 1,737 € 1,220 € 1,501 €
27 Week 1,526 € 1,512 € 1,403 € 1,464 € 1,510 € 1,555 € 1,650 € 1,506 € 1,664 € 1,480 € 1,700 € 1,221 € 1,501 €
28 Week 1,466 € 1,464 € 1,430 € 1,403 € 1,516 € 1,557 €   1,506 € 1,708 € 1,460 € 1,696 € 1,250 € 1,463 €
28 Week 1,466 € 1,464 € 1,403 € 1,403 € 1,468 €     1,430 € 1,727 € 1,460 € 1,660 € 1,239 €   

[mikey]

NZPork: Vote to Give Consumers Clarity and Choice
NEW ZEALAND - New Zealand Pork announced a three-pronged strategy focused on consumer choice, confidence and continuing action on animal welfare following its AGM in Christchurch yesterday.



Speaking from Christchurch, New Zealand Pork Chief Executive Sam McIvor said the industry would continue to actively engage with government as it reviews animal welfare practices, establish an industry-wide animal welfare audit scheme and investigate improved product labeling.

"Consumer confidence is vital to ensure the continued success of the New Zealand pork industry, especially when record levels of inferior imported product has arrived on our shores," said Mr McIvor.

"To a large extent this confidence is based on three key elements – product quality, information and choice. There is no doubt that New Zealand pork is of the highest of quality but there needs to be more work to ensure consumers have accurate information about our pork and are able to make appropriate purchasing decisions based on this."

"For this reason, as well as our focus on the review of the Pig Welfare Code, we will begin an industry-wide animal welfare audit of every commercial pig farm in New Zealand. We will develop a product labeling descriptor system that will allow wholesalers and retailers to clearly identify the production system their pork has been grown under," said Mr McIvor.

The audit scheme will be based around an independent annual review of compliance with the Pig Welfare Code and will dovetail into regular vet visits that commercial pigs farmers have as part of their current animal health and care programmes.

The approach has been strongly supported by abattoirs, wholesalers, processors and retailers as part of their consumer assurance programmes.

"We believe this is the last plank in the pork industry’s ten year welfare improvement programme started in 2005. This programme includes farmer training and education, the monitoring of changes in sow housing methods, the problem piggery reporting scheme and a research programme targeted at testing new sow housing methods."

Providing accurate descriptions of farming systems for the market place to use will allow consumers to purchase with confidence, in the knowledge these descriptors accurately reflect the farming practices used in New Zealand.”

"It is too early to say how we will describe our different farming systems, but this will be part of the work that will be undertaken to ensure we get this right," said Mr McIvor.

"We believe that a focus on the way we produce New Zealand pork will also help show the consumer that the 700,000 kgs of imported pork and pork products arriving in NZ every week are produced under farming systems that are not as animal friendly as ours.

"Although this is not the main reason why we are taking these steps we do feel it is important for consumers to understand how hard our producers are working to create products that are not only price competitive and of a high quality but are of known provenance," said Mr McIvor.

[mikey]

PCR Assay Detects Brucellosis in Wild Boar
SWITZERLAND - A real-time PCR assay was a specific and sensitive tool for the detection of Brucella spp. infections in wild boars, according to new research published by Vladimira Hinic of the National Centre for Zoonoses, Bacterial Animal Diseases and Antimicrobial Resistance (ZOBA) at the University of Berne and co-authors in BMC Veterinary Research.



Background
Control of brucellosis in livestock, wildlife and humans depends on the reliability of the methods used for detection and identification of bacteria.

In the present study, they describe the evaluation of the recently established real-time PCR assay based on the Brucella-specific insertion sequence IS711 with blood samples from 199 wild boars (first group of animals) and tissue samples from 53 wild boars (second group of animals) collected in Switzerland.

Results from IS711 real-time PCR were compared to those obtained by bacterial isolation, Rose Bengal Test (RBT), competitive ELISA (c-ELISA) and indirect ELISA (i-ELISA).

Results
In the first group of animals, IS711 real-time PCR detected infection in 11.1 per cent (16/144) of wild boars that were serologically negative. Serological tests showed different sensitivities (RBT 15.6 per cent, c-ELISA 7.5 per cent and i-ELISA 5.5 per cent) and only two per cent of blood samples were positive with all three tests, which makes interpretation of the serological results very difficult.

Regarding the second group of animals, the IS711 real-time PCR detected infection in 26 per cent of animals, while Brucella spp. could be isolated from tissues of only 9.4 per cent of the animals.

Conclusions
The results presented indicate that IS711 real-time PCR assay is a specific and sensitive tool for detection of Brucella spp. infections in wild boars, according to the researchers. For this reason, they propose the employment of IS711 real-time PCR as a complementary tool in brucellosis screening programmes and for confirmation of diagnosis in doubtful cases.

[mikey]

Report Predicts Growth in Italian Pork Sector
ITALY - The output of poultry and pork production in Italy are forecast to grow by 38 per cent and nine per cent, respectively, between 2009 and 2013.



According to a new report, Italy Agribusiness Report Q3 2009 from companiesandmarkets.com, poultry and pork production in Italy is forecast to grow by 37.64 per cent and 8.88 per cent, respectively, during 2009-2013.

The growth will be partly driven by domestic demand and should also lead to improved balances of trade. Poultry's relative price advantage should give it a competitive edge during recession.

[mikey]

Australia's First Case of Influenza A at Piggery
AUSTRALIA - A piggery in New South Wales (NSW) has been placed in quarantine after returning positive tests for influenza A H1 – the first farm in the country to have tested positive for the virus.



The state's Department for Primary Industries reports that the Minister for Primary Industries, Ian Macdonald, made the announcement today.

"The NSW Government is responding immediately, members of the NSW Department of Industry and Investment's First Response team have been called up, including veterinarians and emergency disease response specialists," Minister Macdonald said.

"I want to stress that it is safe to eat pork and pork products. Our pork industry is among the most biosecure in the world. Only healthy pigs are sent for slaughter at abattoirs in Australia.

"Samples taken from pigs were tested at the NSW Government's Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute (EMAI) laboratories and Influenza A H1 has been confirmed.

"This is the first case of influenza A H1 in an Australian pig herd – but not in the world – and at this stage we believe it was most likely introduced by people working with the animals.

"The affected 280-sow piggery, which is currently housing about 2,000 pigs, has been placed in quarantine and strict biosecurity measures are in place to ensure the virus does not spread.

"Veterinary investigators are now tracing movements of people, animals and equipment on and off the property to get a clearer picture of how the disease is behaving.

"We know that no pigs have been introduced to the property in the last two years and no pigs have moved off the property in more than a week."

NSW chief veterinary officer, Dr Bruce Christie, said the pigs started coughing late last week and were investigated by a private veterinarian earlier this week.

"Since a similar recent outbreak of Influenza A H1N1 in a Canadian piggery, Australia has been reviewing its plans for dealing with Influenza A H1N1 in a local piggery, and is prepared," Dr Christie said.

"The National Consultative Committee on Emergency Animal Disease is meeting tonight to coordinate the best response to the incident.

"NSW Department of Industry and Investment is working closely with NSW Health, NSW Farmers Association, Australian Pork Limited and the Livestock Health and Pest Authorities."

Advice from the NSW Food Authority is as follows:

Pork, including bacon and ham, is safe to eat
Sick animals have not entered into the human food chain, and
The NSW Food Authority does not permit the slaughtering of sick pigs for human consumption

[mikey]

Report Published on China's Meat Market
CHINA - A new report has been published analysing the markets in China for fresh and processed meat.



The report, published by researchandmarkets, covers the market for fresh and processed meat in the People’s Republic of China. The report covers fresh (poultry, pork, beef, lamb and others) and processed (canned, frozen and chilled) meats. Meat contained in prepared ready meals is not included.

In value terms, China's meat market is the second largest sector in the country's entire retail food market. Yet it is one of the last to be affected by the development of new retail formats. Much of the meat sold retail continues to be sold at free wet markets, most of which are to be found in open-air market places or streets. These markets provide a venue at which the customer can buy live poultry or freshly slaughtered meat produce direct from local farmers. However, these markets are gradually being removed from cities, supermarkets and hypermarkets now taking their place.

China's meat market has less to do with company and brand shares than sectoral growth: local consumers eat far greater quantities of fresh meat than they did before economic reforms were launched some 25 years ago. Not only are today's consumers able to buy more meat than ever before: they also have a far wider choice of meat from which to choose.

Improved choice stems in part from vast improvements in China's distribution networks – thanks, in turn, to expanding transport networks – which have helped to develop more regional trade in fresh and processed meats. More produce is therefore moving around the country, reaching consumers in other regions.

Processed meat products are mainly sold through new retail formats such as supermarkets and hypermarkets. Organised supermarket chains are gaining significance as sellers of processed meats, particularly for frozen and chilled products.

This suits the increasingly sophisticated and demanding needs of urban consumers with rising incomes. People are now able to buy more expensive cuts of meat than before, leading to greater demand for variety and quality of produce.

As their incomes and lifestyles improve, Chinese consumers are showing a greater interest in a more varied diet, and cooking with a wider variety of products. As in the West, cookery programmes have proliferated on Chinese television. Similarly, cookery books now fill large sections of local bookshops, reflecting considerable interest in cooking and cuisine amongst local consumers.

The increasing availability of processed and packaged foods has also added to the general growth in people's interest in food, and all of these factors add to the growing demand for more variety and better quality of meat products. Sharp growth in consumer demand has prompted meat producers to introduce greater efficiencies into their organisations.

Improved farming techniques and management are leading to larger-scale operations which increasingly rely on automation in production, packaging and transportation – a process that ultimately will create significant meat supply companies. Although still in its earliest stages, this trend will develop as growers become actively involved in supplying to the fast-growing supermarket and hypermarket chains rapidly expanding outside China's largest cities.

However, frequent food safety scares, especially related to hygiene, disease and the use of rapid growth hormones, have all added to consumer nervousness about the meat that they buy, and these issues have the potential to seriously harm the market.

This recently updated report includes:

An overview of China’s total food market with sales statistics up to 2008
The total value and volume of the meat consumption market, including consumption channel breakdowns and by type of meat, up to 2008
The total value and volume of meat product retail sales, including by type of meat and processed product sector, up to 2008
Value meat provincial and urban/rural retail sales breakdown, up to 2008
Volume and value forecast the meat market in China up to 2013
The retail meat market background and current issues
Marketing and distribution
SWOT analysis
Key manufacturer profiles
Key contacts and trade events
Overview of China's demographics and macroeconomics.

[mikey]

SA Trade Embargo Frustrates Brazilian Producers
SOUTH AFRICA - Brazilian pork producers have expressed their frustrations at South Africa's continued trade embargo on their meat exports.



They say IBSA - the India, Brazil and South Africa forum aimed to create better trade between these countries - is not equipped to resolve trade disputes.

Brazilian pig farmers want to export their meat to South Africa, but an embargo on Brazilian pork is hampering such efforts, reports SABC News. South Africa imports most of its pork from the European Union which is more costly, and this defeats the objectives of IBSA. The forum was established to create better South-to-South relations, to increase trade between developing countries.

President of the Brazilian Pork Producers and Exporters Association Pedro de Camargo Neto says if IBSA was effective, it would not take long to resolve the issue. He adds that IBSA pays too much attention to political issues. Brazilian meat imports were suspended after a 'foot and mouth' disease outbreak in cattle, but the ban on exports to other countries has since been lifted. According to Neto, authorities reckon if there is a 'foot and mouth' outbreak, swine automatically lose value. But he says they consider the risk analysis they have conducted to be safe.

Pig farmers in Brazil say they are ready to resume exports to South Africa as soon as the embargo is lifted. Bilateral relations between South Africa and Brazil are excellent. However South Africa's imposed trade embargo on Brazilian pork remains a sticking point. In 2005 Brazil exported more than $30 million of pork to South Africa and they hope this trade will resume soon.

[mikey]

Australia Shuts Piggery After Flu Outbreak
AUSTRALIA - The New South Wales (NSW) Department of Primary Industries announced on Monday that a piggery hit by A(H1N1) flu would be locked down until all signs of the virus have been eradicated.



Quarantine measures at the 2,000-animal property in Dunedoo, in the state's central west, will remain in place for seven days after the last infected pig returns to full health.

The piggery has been quarantined since Friday after laboratory tests confirmed the animals had the virus.

Healthy animals will be allowed to move from the property for slaughter during the quarantine period, but only after meeting stringent protocols and a veterinary inspection.

"Under the plan, pigs will not move from the property until they have returned to full health and are completely free of clinical signs of the flu," acting chief veterinary officer Ian Roth said in a statement.

"We will continue to monitor the health of the pigs and once sure they are no longer suffering the flu and they have recovered fully for seven days, the quarantine measures will be reconsidered."

It is believed that workers at the piggery may have transmitted the virus to the animals. However, Roth said it was safe for people to eat pork.

[mikey]

CME: China Top Dog in the Pork World
US - CME's Daily Livestock Report for 4 August reports that Given the impact that pork exports or, more accurately, the lack of pork exports have had on the US and Canadian hog markets this year, we thought it might be useful to put these two countries’ pork businesses into a world perspective.



The charts below are based on data from USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. Its very user-friendly PS&D (stands for production, supply and distribution) Online system can be accessed at www.fas.usda.gov/psdonline/. Just click on “Perform a Custom Query” to get access to data that includes most agricultural products and countries, their outputs and demands as well as trade information. The system can virtually bury you in numbers!

 


If there is one clear lesson from both of these charts, it is that in the pork world, China is the big dog and virtually everyone else is part of the tail! China has nearly 3 times as many pigs as 2nd-place EU-27 and produces over twice as much pork. China has nearly 7 times as many pigs as 3rd place United States and produces nearly 5 times as much pork. The INCREASE in China’s pig herd and pork production from 2008 to 2009 is larger than the TOTAL 1 January 2009 inventory and TOTAL 2009 production of all but three competitors: EU-27, US and Brazil. China’s 2009 INCREASES will be larger than the totals for Russia and Canada!

Some readers may be thinking "Yes, but those data from China are notoriously shaky." That is true, but FAS works hard to corroborate the Chinese data with other sources and the input of attaches and others. And regardless of the historical issues, these are the numbers we have for now and are the numbers that we will use at least until FAS updates its data in October.

Another item that jumps out is that the two countries that have caused the most problems with their trade policy decisions this year, China and Russia, are also the two countries that are growing the fastest. They are also among just four countries (with Brazil and Japan) that are increasing hog numbers this year and 5 countries (with Canada, the Philippines and Belarus) that are increasing pork production. It is possible that Belarus is increasing hog numbers as well but the last inventory data that FAS has for that country is for 2007. Higher pig numbers and pork output has pushed Chinese pig prices sharply lower this year and the government is no doubt trying to protect producers to encourage the rebuilding of breeding herds which, according to FAS, fell by 6 per cent in 2006. Russia has now cleared US pork from almost all states for (and all important porkproducing states) for importation but its interest in protecting its growing domestic business is clear.

Note also that FAS provides pork production data for far more countries than it provides hog inventories, pig crop, sow herd size, and slaughter data. When asked about the difference, a FAS contact said they had dropped countries with a "low level of significance" from the inventory data. We’re not sure how Vietnam and the Philippines are of low significance as the 7th and 9th largest pork producing countries. And that question becomes even more pertinent considering the close beef trade ties that exist between Vietnam and China.

[mikey]

Pig Industry Seeking Better Flu Checks on Workers
AUSTRALIA - There's a call for all Australian piggery workers with flu symptoms to be tested for the swine flu virus.



A piggery at Dunedoo in Central West NSW remains in lockdown after pigs at the property tested positive for the illness.

It is believed that a sick farm worker transmitted the virus to the pigs, reports ABC.

Andrew Spencer, from Australian Pork Limited, says people infected with swine flu pose a serious threat to the industry.

"We've got producers who've sent sick workers to the doctor and were keen to find out if they had the swine flu variant of human influenza," he says.

"But they haven't been able to tell that, because doctors aren't allowed to just run routine testing for it.

"We're actually in discussions with the Department of Health about that."

[mikey]

A report from the Ministry of Agriculture in China has revealed that the country’s total live pig production for the first half of this year could reach 390.5 million, a 6% increase over the same period of last year. The growth was attributed to the expansion in scaled pig farming. A survey in 20 major pig production provinces showed that as of the end of June, total number of live pigs on-farm was 450 million, up 4.8% year-on-year.