NSS: export levels the risks of oversaturation of the domestic market

At the annual meeting of the National Union of Pig Breeders, the results of the past year and the first half of 2021 were summed up, and the main forecast trends in the industry for the coming years were outlined. The Union believes that the main challenge to the Russian pig industry is the risk of oversaturation of the domestic pork market. But if the EXPORT potential is realized, the industry will remain stable.

Yury Kovalev, General DIRECTOR of the organization, made a report on trends in pig breeding. According to him, at the end of 2020, the volume of pork production was the highest among all types of MEAT and amounted to 4,287 thousand tons (+ 8.9%). The export of pork products increased by 90%, exceeding 206 thousand tons. The most significant increase (+118%) was the export of pork meat, whose share of total exports reached 65%. Exports of pork by-products increased (+45%) due to the recovery of exports to Hong Kong and Vietnam.

According to Kovalev, pork consumption in RUSSIA in 2020 increased by almost 173 thousand tons and became the only segment of the meat market where consumption increased significantly. “A decrease in wholesale prices by 10% in the first half of 2020, as well as “covid” factors, ensured an increase in pork consumption by 4.4%,” the expert noted. “Consumption of all other types of meat has hardly changed.” The speaker also emphasized that over the past five years, the share of pork in the structure of meat consumption has been steadily growing and in 2020 reached the level of 4,093 (36%), which was one of the highest figures over the past 30 years.

In his speech, Yuri Kovalev announced the results of the first half of 2021. Thus, the total increase in pork production amounted to 54.6 thousand tons (+2.1%), which turned out to be the lowest indicator over the past 10 years. The expert named a complex of epidemiological problems at enterprises as the main reason. At the same time, in the first half of 2021, pork became the only growth driver among all types of meat.

The expert noted that this year the situation with the “zeroing” of pork imports, achieved in 2020, will continue. “Imports have ceased to have any impact on the domestic pork market in the country,” Kovalev stressed.

Pork exports, in turn, continue to grow, although the growth rate has fallen several times compared to 2020.
The meeting outlined the main changes that await the pig industry in the period up to 2025. In the next four years, a sharp increase in domestic competition and a decrease in wholesale prices for pigs are expected. This is due to the achievement of 100% self-sufficiency in pork and the continued growth of domestic production.

The Union believes that the main challenge to Russian pig breeding is the risk of oversaturation of the domestic market. “The opening of the market of CHINA and other countries of Southeast Asia for the export of Russian pork is the only chance to mitigate the negative consequences of oversaturation of the domestic market,” Yuri Kovalev stressed.

Reference. The National Union of Pig Breeders was established in 2009 to bring together representatives of the industry to coordinate their business activities, represent and protect their interests. The Union promotes the development of competitive pork production in Russia, the improvement of the quality of meat products, the provision of the most favorable conditions for the activity of pork producers, and the increase in exports.