SARS-COV-2 took its toll on the EU pig production
According to the latest figures from Eurostat, EU pig slaughter in May was nearly 8% down on the same month last year. Throughput totalled 18.8 million head, 1.6 million fewer than a year earlier, with COVID-19 related disruption taking its toll. This meant that the number of pigs killed across the EU in the first five months of the year was down by 3% at 100.1 million head.
The far worst-hit country was the Netherlands, who reported a drop in pig meat production of 28%, followed by Italy (17%), France (14%) and Germany (7%). "Slightly higher carcase weights meant pig meat production across the year to date was down by 2.5% on a year earlier at 9.47 million tonnes. Production in May alone was nearly 7% lower year-on-year," observes Bethan Wilkins, senior analyst for AHDB.
In contrast, throughput was somewhat higher on the year in Denmark and Spain. Danish kill in May was up by nearly 2%. With falls earlier in the year though, Danish slaughter for the year to date was stable overall.
However, the industry doesn’t have an accurate handle on what causes many of these losses &...
"The modern slaughterhouse, which has the highest standards in terms of animal welfare and occupa...
Following visits to meat processors during the week, the buyers enjoyed a tour of John Purcell&rs...
