EU: Reduced available supplies are pushing up pork prices

Other Frozen Pork Cuts

United Kingdom

Published Mar 28, 2024

Tridge summary

The article outlines a significant downturn in the EU's pig meat production, with a 7% decrease in 2023, reaching the lowest volume in over a decade at 20.6 million tonnes. This decline follows a 6% drop in 2022, primarily due to reduced slaughter numbers. The EU's pig population in December 2023 was the smallest recorded since 2001, with expectations of further production decreases due to herd size reduction and new environmental regulations. Additionally, the article notes a decrease in EU pig meat exports and imports, with exports hitting their lowest point since 2014 and imports being the lowest in over a decade, except for 2021. It also highlights changes in market share, with the UK's share in EU pig meat imports decreasing, whereas Switzerland and Chile have experienced an increase.

Disclaimer: The above summary was generated by a state-of-the-art LLM model and is intended for informational purposes only. It is recommended that readers refer to the original article for more context.

Original content

The driving force behind these price increases has been reported as an uplift in demand alongside the continued tightening of supply. Production of pigmeat in the EU was the lowest volume recorded in over a decade in 2023, at 20.6 million tonnes. This is a 7% decline year on year and follows a 6% fall in volumes in 2022. These declines have been driven by reduced slaughter numbers which are also back 7% year on year. Forecasts for 2024 predict further decline in pig meat production, with the contraction in herd size seen over the last couple of years not expected to recover. In December 2023 the total pig population in the EU 27 stood at 133.6 million head, the smallest recorded population since records started in 2001. Pair this alongside incoming environmental regulations and the long term production outlook for the EU appears limited, with the EU commission forecasting an annual decline of around 1% between now and 2035. A challenging trade dynamic through 2023 may also have ...

Source: EuroMeat