German Meat: "An exit program won't do anything!"

With the outbreak of African swine fever (ASF), Germany lost important export markets. What role do EU exports and third country exports currently play for the German meat industry? Steffen Reiter: It is true that the loss of our most important third country markets had a dramatic impact on the industry. For cuts that were previously marketed as specialties, e.g. in China, new sales channels must now be found - with often weaker revenues. In the first seven months of 2021, exports to third countries more than halved compared to the previous year. It's dramatic. Nevertheless, export continues to play a major role for us. Total exports to third countries and the EU fell by 4.3 percent to 1.37 million t. The export value, however, has fallen by 28 percent. How much are German exporters and ultimately farmers currently losing added value due to the lack of ASP-free status? Reiter: If you can market by-products as delicacies in third countries, you earn an additional € 25 per pig . We ...