Canada: Alternative pork export markets soar as Chinese sales fall

Canada’s pork exports to China were $609 million in the first seven months of 2021. That sounds decent, but sales to China were $1.025 billion at the end of July in 2020, which means Canadian pork exports to China are down $400 million this year. In a normal year, a $400 million drop in exports would be massive news. But Canadian exporters have found alternative markets for Canadian pork, mostly Mexico and the Philippines. Exports to those countries have exploded, increasing 155 and 327 percent, respectively: The strong sales to Mexico and the Philippines are connected to the drop in exports to China. “The (Chinese) market was very strong last year, but a combination of Canadian pork plant suspensions (due to COVID) and a softening Chinese domestic market has led to lower China purchases from Canada this year,” Trevor Sears, president and chief executive officer of Canada Pork, a market development and promotion organization for the country’s pork industry, said in an email. “This ...