EU pork production contracts further
EU pork production has contracted further during the first quarter of 2023, while prices continued to rise.
“Pig producers in the EU continue to face multiple challenges impacting on the market. High input costs continue to prevail, impacting on production, while the threat of African swine fever (ASF) continues to persist over the region, limiting export opportunities,” AHDB analyst Isabelle Shohet said.
During the first three months of 2023, an estimated 5.4m tonnes of pig meat was produced in the EU-27, a reduction of just under half a million tonnes (-8%) from the same period in 2022. EU short-term outlooks forecast production to decline 5% across the whole year, following a contraction in 2022.
Spain continues to be the largest producer of pig meat in Europe, but has also seen the largest decline year on year, with Q1 2023 levels sitting just below 1.33m tonnes. This is a fall of 97,600 tonnes (7%) from Q1 2022. Germany and Denmark have also recorded large falls in production of 94,800 tonnes (-8%) and 91,600 tonnes (-20%) respectively from 2022 levels.
Vicky Lewis | Pig World
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