Contraction seen in the Danish pig herd
Danish pig herd has dropped by 1.8% in the last 12 months, totaling 13.15 million head according to Statistics Denmark. All categories and age groups had shrunk in number. total breeding pigs herd has lost 3.2% from the last year's count, with a large decline in maiden gilts (-10%). Also, slaughter pigs are down 2.3% this year, totaling 3.2 million head. Prices for finished pigs are low across most of Europe and have been for some time. The EU is contending with an oversupply of pork in the wake of coronavirus, African Swine Fever in Germany and a decline in Chinese import demand. Profitability for producers is severely challenged, and so a decline in Denmark’s pig population should come as no surprise.
"However, there is underlying strength in Danish pig meat production, with reports suggesting that we should only expect limited reductions overall. Pig production is apparently still popular, and willing entrants easy to find, with a “waiting list” to take over from those leaving the sector. Denmark is a key supplier to the UK, and competitively priced pig meat there will likely continue to weigh on our domestic market in the coming weeks and months," commented Duncan Wyatt, AHDB lead analyst.
Even so, at the end of January, Danish Crown estimated that a backlog of 300,000 pigs has appeared in partner farms as a delay in processing was reported for the last few months.
"There are several factors that mean that right now we have a pool of exposed pigs of around 300,000, and this naturally gives understandable frustrations to our owners. This is reinforced by the fact that the cost of producing pigs is currently rising on both feed and energy, while at the same time the listing has unfortunately fallen. Therefore, the compensation rules are now improved so that the owners with heavy, exposed pigs do not bear a disproportionate share of the costs," says Nicolaj Norgaard, director of Danish Crown Owner Service.
The company announced its compensation program must be seen as a temporary tool "to ensure that the unit holders with the most vulnerable pigs are not hit extraordinarily harder than their counterparts."
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