Monday, January 19, 2009Print This Page
Positive Report on English Pig Industry
UK - The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee conducted a major inquiry into the English pig industry last September, and its report has now been published.

 

The committee took written and oral evidence from industry bodies, retailers, processors and producers and has now published its report which is extremely positive and highlights the excellence of the English pig industry. However, it does point out the industry faces a number of challenges.

The committee said:

English pig producers have higher welfare standards than much of the rest of the EU. However, even in 2013 when the rest of Europe starts to catch up with us there still will not be a level playing field.
The industry has suffered over the last year from rocketing feed prices and feed is about 50 per cent of the cost of raising a pig – prices have now started to fall back and some producers are moving into profit.
Defra should put its own house in order first by making sure it and other government departments buy pork and pork products at least to UK standards. The industry has been working hard on this and is making progress towards getting more British pork and pork products into government departments.
About two-thirds of the pork imported into the UK would be illegal to produce here due to lower welfare standards of imported product.
Pig farmers have had to implement huge amounts of environmental legislation, which has been costly. In the UK, the Government has given no help to the industry to achieve these goals whereas in other European countries, governments have been very supportive either through with tax breaks or grants).

Tuesday, January 20, 2009Print This Page
Pigs Illegally Injected with Water in Tianjin
CHINA - Food inspectors in north China have discovered that a city-backed pork products plant was injecting pigs with water to illegally increase their weight.



Investigators who were tipped off to the practice raided the Xixinyuan slaughterhouse in Tianjin's Xiqing District last Friday, according to Chinese media reports.

Three officials had to struggle to enter a pig farm that was part of the production facility, pushing to open an iron door as workers on the other side tried to hold them back.

Once they forced their way inside, inspectors found iron hooks, plastic water pipes, barrels, bloody knives and several bottles of unidentified liquid. The items were clearly used for water injection, the officials said.

Inspectors told reporters that pigs awaiting slaughter should not be allowed to eat or drink. Factory chief Yi Shunpu reportedly said he was unaware that the pigs were being improperly bulked up.

The facility slaughters more than 400 pigs a day to provide pork to Tianjin's Nankai District and neighbouring provinces. It is one of Tianjin's 36 government-designated slaughterhouses charged with producing quality pork.

But it was the third so far to be caught forcing water into pigs. The other two have had their licenses revoked.

ShanghaiDaily.com reports that it was not clear in yesterday's reports what action would be taken against the latest offender.

Each slaughterhouse has a government inspector, but he or she is in charge only of looking out for pork from diseased pigs and doesn't have authority over water-injected meat, officials told reporters.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009Print This Page
Shoulder Ulcers Persistent in Danish Sows
DENMARK - In the spring and summer of 2008 researchers from the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences examined no less than 3,831 lactating sows on 98 different farms.



The results showed that 17.2 per cent of the lactating sows had shoulder ulcers to a greater or smaller degree on one or both shoulders.



An investigation of the frequency of shoulder ulcers in sows on Danish farms shows that the problem persists. Photo: DJFThis is the first time a study has been made of the frequency of the problem on farms. Earlier studies have been carried out on slaughtered sows at the slaughterhouses and this has not given a proper picture of the situation on the farms.

In the new study the lesions are classified in three categories. Grade1 is a superficial lesion, grade 2 includes all skin layers, while grades 3-4 are deep lesions. 13.0 per cent of the sows had grade 1 lesions, i.e. superficial lesions, while 4.2 per cent of the sows had lesions classified as grade 2 or worse.

There was a big difference in the frequency of shoulder ulcers on the individual farms, says senior scientist Marianne Bonde, Department of Animal Health, Welfare and Nutrition, who headed the study.

"We found sows with shoulder ulcers on all the farms we visited, but on many farm there were only a few sows with ulcers. On other farms there were problems with shoulder ulcers in more than 30 per cent of the sows," she says.

The farms in the study were randomly selected via the central livestock register. The pig farmers were generally very interested in doing something about the problems, says Marianne Bonde.

However, there is a great need for clarifying the causes of shoulder ulcers so they can be prevented. The data collected will form the basis for identifying important causes.

"We will now investigate the importance of the sow’s general health, e.g. body condition, problems stemming from pregnancy, and problems with the legs and feet on the frequency of shoulder ulcers. We will also evaluate the influence of the housing conditions such as how much room the sow has to move around in the farrowing pen, which type of floor material they are lying on, and straw usage. We will also throw light on other elements, such as the conditions in the dry sow housing, feed, and the feeding system," Marianne Bonde explains

Monday, January 26, 2009Print This Page
GM Pigs to be Bred for Organ Transplant Harvesting
UK - Lord Winston, a fertility researcher, has announced plans to breed genetically engineered pigs, for the purpose of harvesting their organs for transplant into humans.



"Pigs' organs are the right size for human transplantation, and they work similarly to human organs," said Lord Winston, head of the Institute of Reproductive and Developmental Biology at Hammersmith Hospital in London.

According to Natural News.com, health professionals have attempted to transplant organs from animals into humans before, but research in the field dropped off in the late 1990s when early transplant attempts were rejected and attacked by recipients' bodies as foreign tissue. Concerns over the possibility that transplants could facilitate the spread of diseases from animals to humans also contributed to a drop in the field's popularity.

Now Winston and colleagues from Imperial College want to revive the idea by breeding pigs that contain six human genes, in order to decrease the chances that the pigs' organs will be rejected by human bodies. They have formed a company called Atazoa that has successfully created transgenic pig sperm, but their research stalled due to strict British regulations over transgenic animals.

"One of the biggest problems in Britain is the regulatory framework. It's been very difficult to get this sort of animal work going," Lord Winston said.

The researchers initially had to wait 13 months before they were licensed to genetically modify the pigs, then were told that regulations prohibited breeding genetically modified animals on agricultural land.

In response, Atazoa has moved its research to the United States, which has drastically fewer regulations concerning genetic research on animals. The researchers will breed the pigs with genetically modified sperm in Missouri, and hope to produce a fully modified animal within the next two years. After that, they hope to begin clinical trials to demonstrate that the genetically engineered organs are safe for human transplant

Monday, January 26, 2009Print This Page
Pork Consumption Grows Despite Difficulties
NEW ZEALAND - “The most difficult of the last 30 years” is how Chris Trengrove describes 2008 in New Zealand Pork’s recently released Annual Report. “Biofuels, a commodity boom, drought, losses, exits, grain prices, and recession all combined to make what many commentators have described as the perfect storm,” says Trengrove.

 

During the year grain prices reached crippling levels, meaning for a period that producers were losing up to $50 per pig and resultantly exits began. However by the end of the year, the schedule was pushing $4.00/kg, the exchange rate had become favourable, pork imports had dropped significantly and spot grain prices had stabilised allowing producers to now make modest margins.

Trengrove notes that the downturn has had an impact with 10 per cent plus production capacity leaving the industry and therefore expects production to be down for the 2008/09 year.

Despite the difficult year Trengrove points to a number of successes for the industry. The launch of the Lesnies 100 per cent New Zealand Bacon of the Year Competition drew 110 bacon makers and 233 individual bacon entries. “Strong consumer interest reinforced country of origin as an important issue and it is satisfying that all of our major processors have dedicated NZ hams and bacons and they carry our 100 per cent New Zealand bacon and ham labelling”.

Consumption of fresh pork has also continued to grow notes Trengrove. “Growth in fresh consumption has been half a kilo per capita per year for the last five years, 75 per cent of our domestic production now goes to the fresh market. There is no doubt that we can continue to grow consumption but the challenge is to ensure that we lift returns to producers.”

In that regard NZPork has continued a strong industry sustainability focus on biosecurity, environment and animal welfare with mixed results. “It is disappointing that another 12 months have passed without resolution of the Import Health Standards for pigmeat from countries with PRRS. We have continued to make sound science representations to MAF Biosecurity New Zealand (MAFBNZ) but have been unable to make progress.”

During the year NZPork developed new initiatives in animal welfare assessment and investigated biogas application but the environmental area overall continues to be difficult particularly for farming related resource consents. “The attitude of councils nationwide is variable. Increasingly we see over officious approaches which threaten the sustainability of current businesses and make it difficult for new ones to establish. This requires action at the very highest levels of government to ensure that the right to farm and wealth creation for our nation is protected. In this respect we applaud the Government’s review of the Resource Management Act (RMA).

Monday, January 26, 2009Print This Page
Tainted Irish Pork Seized in Eastern China
CHINA - Chinese quarantine authorities in the eastern city of Nanjing have seized more than 23 tonnes of frozen Irish pork that was found to be contaminated with dioxin and ordered it be returned, state media reported yesterday.



The pork was imported by a company in the nearby city of Suzhou in October, the Xinhua news agency said.

"Inspectors sealed the pork and ordered the company to send it back," the report added.

China banned the import of Irish pork last month following Dublin's order to recall domestically produced pork products because of contamination with dioxin, which in some forms and concentrations, and with long exposure, can cause cancer.

Irish pork was pulled from shelves in up to 25 countries, although production and sale of pork approved as safe by Irish authorities restarted soon after the scare.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009Print This Page
Pork Imports Up in January-October 2008
CHINA - China increased pork imports 470 per cent year-on-year by volume in the first 10 months of 2008 to meet demand and stabilize prices, the General Administration of Customs reported today.



From January to October, China imported 348,000 tons of pork. These imports were valued at $490 million, up 570 per cent.

The United States and European Union accounted for 88.8 per cent of the total. Imports from the United States rose 820 per cent and those from the European Union rose 520 per cent.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009Print This Page
New Policy Issued to Prevent Hog Price Decline
CHINA - AgFeed Industries, Inc., the largest commercial hog producer and the largest premix feed company in China, today commented on a recently released Chinese central government administrative regulation that could prevent large declines in hog prices with a view toward stabilizing hog production and hog prices in order to protect the interests of hog farms.



"The action taken by the Chinese government," stated Dr. Songyan Li, AgFeed's Chairman, "underscores the importance of pork to the Chinese economy and the dietary preferences of the people of China. We are pleased that the government has taken this action and we are hopeful that these measures will result in a stabilization of our pork prices and have a positive impact on our operations going forward."

Gerry Daignault, AgFeed's COO adds, "The recent government action gives confidence to AgFeed's future investment plans, which include modernization of our pork production facilities, investment in our employees, environmental programs and bio security. These actions are part of our effort to, among other things, assure consistent high quality and safe pork."

The Chinese regulation sets out measures to be taken in the event that certain levels of hog price declines occur. Decline levels are based on pre-established "Grain-to-Hog" price ratios, the number of slaughtered sows and monthly sow inventories. Depending on the severity of any decreases in hog prices, the Chinese government shall implement one or more of the following strategic initiatives: publish hog price decline warnings, purchase market hogs for its strategic reserve, grant subsidies to farms, or adjust pork imports and exports.

The government may also take other remedial action. In the event of a sever drop in hog prices, hog farms in the largest hog producing areas will receive a subsidy of $15 for each gestation sow and nationally designated hog breeding farms will receive a subsidy of $15 for each breeding boar.

As part of the regulation, the Government vowed to promote the collaboration between large pork consuming areas and large hog producing areas. For example, large pork consuming areas are encouraged to sign long-term supply agreements with large hog producing areas and to set up hog production plants in large hog producing areas.

In addition, hog farms are encouraged to negotiate long-term sales contracts with slaughter houses and wholesale markets to maintain hog price stability. In addition, the Government plans to strengthen pork quality inspection to ensure feed safety and to address unreasonable government taxes and fees to hog raising, transportation, slaughtering and hog sales.

Friday, January 30, 2009Print This Page
Little Concern for GM Animal Farms in Australia
AUSTRALIA - The report, GM stockfeed in Australia: economic issues for producers and consumers, was released yesterday by Phillip Glyde, Executive Director, ABARE.



The report explores the key economic issues for supply chain participants associated with the use of stockfeed containing GM (genetically modified) ingredients and provides an indication of market acceptance of edible products from animals fed GM stockfeed (such as chicken meat, eggs, beef, sheep meat, pig meat, dairy products and live exports).

“The increasing adoption of GM crops has led to a greater presence in stockfeed mixes both here and overseas,” Mr Glyde said.

“The report found that there is little evidence of consumers in Australia and Australia’s major export markets rejecting meat, egg and dairy products from animals fed stockfeed containing GM ingredients,” Mr Glyde said.

However, consumer awareness of the current use of GM ingredients in stockfeed appears to be low both in cases. While the few studies conducted on consumer acceptance in Australia and the United States indicate some consumer aversion to consuming products from animals fed GM feed, there is no evidence to suggest this is lowering their demand.

“There are no mandatory labelling requirements or market access restrictions for meat, egg and dairy products from animals fed stockfeed containing GM ingredients either here or in our major export markets,” Mr Glyde added.

This is also the case in the European Union, which is regarded as having some of the strictest regulations on genetically modified organisms.

It is estimated that the chicken meat and egg industries are the most likely to include GM ingredients in their feed because of their high reliance on protein meals, such as imported soybean and canola meals.

Given current GM regulations, and degrees of consumer acceptance and awareness in Australia and its major livestock product export markets, it seems unlikely Australian livestock producers who choose to use GM feed will be disadvantaged.

“Other livestock industries may increase their intake of GM stockfeed in the future, as more varieties of GM crops are developed and commercialised,” Mr Glyde said.

In releasing the report, Mr Glyde acknowledged funding provided by the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry under the recently concluded National Biotechnology Strategy.

Monday, February 02, 2009Print This Page
New Vet Certificate for US Imports Wanted
RUSSIA - Russia's food safety watchdog wants to revise the veterinary certificate for pork imports from the United States as quickly as possible, and introduce a new one on 1 June, according to Russia's Interfax News Agency.



Until then, pork and raw pork products from the US will be imported under tighter laboratory control, a source at the Veterinary and Phyto-Sanitary Oversight Service told Interfax.

The proposal was made after US officials, during a recent video conference between the Russian regulator and USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, said the US had not assumed the obligation to fulfill Russian veterinary health requirements in pork shipments to Russia, the source said. The current veterinary certificate, introduced in November 2006, does not stipulate that those requirements must be fulfilled, reports Meatingplace.

"We think it necessary to review the current veterinary certificate as soon as possible. A draft of the new form for this document will be sent to FSIS very soon so that it can be introduced on 1 June 2009," Interfax quoted the representative of the Russian regulator as saying.

USDA announced last week that Russia halted pork imports from some major US pork processing plants and cold storage facilities due to export certificate errors.

Tuesday, February 03, 2009Print This Page
Oz Pork Producers Reminded of Swill Feeding Ban
AUSTRALIA - Pig producers have been reminded that swill feeding is banned in Australia.



Swill is any food waste containing meat or other animal products of by-products, apart from Australian milk by-products that is fed to pigs.

According to Weekly Times Now, Victorian Department of Primary Industries principal animal health officer Gerry Watt said the department had surveyed over 600 food waste outlets across the state and found most were aware it is an offence to supply food waste containing meat or contaminated by meat to anyone to feed to pigs.

“Any livestock owners suspected of feeding banned material to pigs will be followed up to ensure the practice ceases, immediately,” he said.

“In many countries swill feeding is used as a cheap source of food for pigs, however, this is a very dangerous practice, and is banned in Australia.

“Swill feeding has been shown to cause outbreaks of serious diseases overseas. The 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak in the United Kingdom was started by swill feeding infected material to pigs costing the country billions of pounds and the farming community great heartache.

Mr Watt said Australia was fortunate to be free of many serious diseases of livestock such as Foot and Mouth Disease and Classical Swine.

“An exotic disease outbreak would severely affect the livestock industries and the Australian economy,” he said.

“Feeding of infected and illegally imported meat or dairy product scraps to pigs is seen as the most likely way in which an exotic disease could be introduced into Australia.”

Tuesday, February 03, 2009Print This Page
Irish Pork Trade to South Africa Resumes
IRELAND - The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith TD welcomed confirmation from the South African Department of Agriculture that they have decided to lift trade restrictions on the import of pork and pork products from Ireland.



Minister Smith said that this decision was further vindication of the prompt and decisive action of the Irish authorities following the confirmed presence of dioxins in Irish pork in early December, a fact acknowledged by the South African authorities.

The Minister said that while the South African market was relatively small, at approximately €1 million in 2007, it was an important step in restoring confidence in important international markets and follows confirmation by the Japanese authorities that normal arrangements for the importation of Irish pigmeat were continuing.

Minister Smith said that the resumption of the South African trade and the continuation of the Japanese trade was “a reflection of the work of my Department, Bord Bia and our embassies in providing reassurance about the quality and safety of Irish pigmeat” and said that he would continue to work closely with the agencies and “would be happy to travel to any markets with which we were having continuing difficulties if that would be helpful in restoring confidence and resuming trade.”

Wednesday, February 04, 2009Print This Page
China Largest Pork Importer in History in 2008
CHINA - China's overseas purchases and imports of pork and pork products in calendar year 2008 were unprecedented for any single country in history, according to US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) calculations from just-released Chinese trade data.

 

Based on import totals from China and Hong Kong, the country imported 1.925 million metric tons (4.2 billion pounds) of pork and pork products last year, including 1.161 million tons (nearly 2.6 billion pounds) of pork variety meats and 764,000 tons (1.7 billion pounds) of pork cuts.

Available trade data suggests that China's imports eclipsed the previous single-year record of 1.022 million tons (2.2 billion pounds) of pork imported by Japan in 2005.

"The volume demonstrates the huge influence China can have on global markets when supply and demand become imbalanced,” said Joel Haggard, senior vice president of USMEF's Asia Pacific region. “The import volume, though huge, represents less than 5 per cent of China’s consumption."

Although final data for 2008 is not yet in, USMEF estimates that total US pork and pork product exports to China and Hong Kong reached 386,000 tons (851 million pounds) valued at nearly $700 million in 2008. The EU and Brazil were the other major pork suppliers to the region.

Haggard believes it is unlikely that China's pork imports this year will match last year's record. Increased industry profitability last spring, coupled with a range of hog raising subsidies, has resulted in a substantial expansion of China's herd, and lower hog and pork prices. As of yesterday, live market hog prices in China averaged RMB 12.75/kg., or $84/cwt., 25 per cent below the record RMB 17.04/kg. price set in April last year.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, by the end of the third quarter of 2008, China's live hog inventory had increased 6.6 percent from the year-earlier figure, and the sow population increased 12.4 per cent. Total marketed hogs increased 5.8 per cent and meat production was up approximately 6 percent.

Although the post lunar new year early spring period usually marks the annual low point in demand, USMEF has heard reports of serious respiratory disease outbreaks that could be adding a bearish tone to the market. That said, USMEF expects imported variety meat demand to hold through 2009, although US muscle cuts face stiffer competition from domestic supplies.

On 12 January, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the state's leading macroeconomic planning and policy agency under the State Council, in concert with key ministries including the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Agriculture, AQSIQ and the Ministry of Finance, announced a new temporary pork price stabilization program ostensibly designed to smooth out the country's volatile hog cycle. Specifically, the program establishes an early warning system for low live hog and pork prices based upon the ratio of live hog to grain prices. As the live hog to corn price index drops, the program sets triggers for different policy actions by central and local authorities, ranging from mandating government purchases of pork for reserves to restricting imports and stimulating exports if prices drop into a "red" zone range.

China's first new central policy document of the new lunar year of the ox pledged "tough" measures to support rural areas and agriculture this year. China noted that rural areas face the most difficult challenges during the global economic downturn. With 40 per cent of rural income dependent on non-farm work, such as manufacturing jobs in coastal factories, the loss of overseas demand will translate directly into pain for the rural sector.

Results of a new Chinese survey announced yesterday estimate that 15 percent of migrant rural workers – approximately 20 million people – have lost their jobs due to the economic crisis. A number of subsidy increases have been announced for the rural sector in addition to those for the hog-raising sector, including farm machinery and appliance purchasing subsidies, and a 16 per cent rise in the minimum purchase price for grain.

Wednesday, February 04, 2009Print This Page
Farming Must Change to Feed the World
INDIA - An expert from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) urged a more sustainable approach to farming at an international farm conference in New Delhi today.

 

The world's farmers must quickly switch to more sustainable and productive farming systems to grow the food needed by a swelling world population and respond to climate change, FAO's top crops expert told an international farm congress here today.

In a keynote speech to 1,000 participants at the IVth World Congress on Conservation Agriculture (CA) in New Delhi, Shivaji Pandey, Director of FAO's Plant Production and Protection Division, endorsed CA as an essential part of that change.

"The world has no alternative to pursuing Sustainable Crop Production Intensification to meet the growing food and feed demand, to alleviate poverty and to protect its natural resources. Conservation Agriculture is an essential element of that Intensification," Mr Pandey said.

Conservation Agriculture is a farming system that does away with regular ploughing and tillage and promotes permanent soil cover and diversified crops rotation to ensure optimal soil health and productivity. Introduced some 25 years ago, it is now practiced on 100 million hectares of land across the world.

Environmental Damage
Conventional intensive farming methods had often contributed to environmental damage, resulting in declining rates of agricultural productivity just as the world needs to double its food production to feed nine billion people by 2050, Mr Pandey said.

"In the name of intensification in many places around the world, farmers over-ploughed, over-fertilized, over-irrigated, over-applied pesticides," he declared. "But in so doing we also affected all aspects of the soil, water, land, biodiversity and the services provided by an intact ecosystem. That began to bring yield growth rates down."

On current trends, the rate of growth in agricultural productivity is expected to fall to 1.5 per cent between now and 2030 and further to 0.9 per cent between 2030 and 2050, compared with 2.3 per cent per year since 1961.

In developing countries, growth in wheat yields has gone down from about 5 per cent in 1980 to 2 per cent in 2005. Growth in rice yields went down from 3.2 per cent to 1.2 per cent during the same period while maize yields dropped from 3.1 per cent to 1 per cent.

Smaller Footprint
Conservation agriculture could not only help bring yields back up but also deliver several important environmental benefits, Mr Pandey continued. Aside from restoring soil health, it also saved on energy use in agriculture, reducing the footprint of a sector which currently accounts for some 30 per cent of global greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions.

It could further mitigate climate change by helping sequester carbon in the soil and also potentially save 1,200 cubic kilometres of water a year by 2030 since healthy soil retains more moisture and needs less irrigation.

Only with sustainable intensification of crop production can serious progress be made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals on hunger and poverty reduction and on ensuring environmental sustainability, Mr Pandey warned. "We are currently headed in the wrong direction for both of them," he added.

He urged governments, donors and other stakeholders to provide policy and financial support to ensure early, wider uptake of CA. Training, participatory research and building strong farmers' organizations should be accelerated while newly-developed CA equipment should be made widely available and/or manufactured locally.

Delegates to the four-day Congress include farmers, experts, and policy makers from all over the world. The meeting is hosted by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS). FAO, along with IFAD and other Indian and international organizations are among the sponsors and co-organizers of this largest global gathering of the Conservation Agriculture community.

Key Facts on CA
FAO offers the following key facts on Conservation Agriculture:

In 1960, the average hectare of arable land, globally, supported 2.4 persons. By 2005, this figure had increased to 4.5 persons per hectare and by 2050 the estimate is that a single hectare of land will need to support between 6.1 and 6.4 people. Obviously each hectare will need to produce much more food.
But the rate of growth in agricultural productivity is declining instead of rising. Whereas this has averaged 2.3 per cent a year since 1961, it is expected to fall to 1.5 per cent between now and 2030 and drop further to 0.9 per cent between 2030 and 2050.
One reason for declining productivity growth rates lies in over-reliance by farmers on increasing levels of inputs to raise production, which harms soils and ecosystems and brings diminishing returns.
Crop yields from Conservation Agriculture are at least equal to those from conventional intensive farming but are more stable and need diminishing applications of chemical inputs where conventional systems often require higher doses to obtain the same results. CA is much more environmentally sustainable.
By doing away with regular tilling and ploughing, CA also reduces the workload on farmers by some 50 per cent on average. It is also cheaper since fewer inputs are used, and mechanized farmers can save up to 70 per cent in fuel costs.
CA's three basic principles - avoiding continuous mechanical soil disturbance, maintaining permanent organic soil cover and ensuring proper crop rotation - result in healthier soil which can produce more under drought and excess water conditions and has the potential to save 1,200 cubic kilometres of water a year by 2030.
It can help mitigate climate change not only by reducing the greenhouse gasses produced by agricultural land use - which accounts for some 30 percent of total emissions - but by helping sequester carbon in soil at an average of some 0.5 tonnes per hectare per year. This currently adds up to 54 million tonnes but will increase with the number of hectares under CA.

Brazil plans to export pork to China
[05 January 2009] Brazil’s President Luiz Incacio Lula da Silva will ask China to buy pork from Brazil in his visit to the country in May. If China agrees, Brazil aims to export 50,000 tonnes of pork a year to China, said Abipecs or Brazilian Pork Industry and Export Association. The association expects that Brazil’s pork exports in 2009 would be at the same level of 2008 or 529,410 tonnes.