Ukraine: Crisis in pig farming sector to begin

At the end of 2020 year, the situation on the pork market in Ukraine, as well as around the world, was unstable and unpredictable. Although in the spring and summer months Ukrainian pig farmers were in a better situation than their counterparts in the EU and the USA, since abroad many slaughterhouses were closed due to outbreaks of coronavirus among workers, resulting in disruptions in the industry. The market was also affected by the spread of African swine fever (ASF).

During the first three quarters of 2020 in Ukraine, the number of pigs even increased. However, the rise in price on cereals and the economic crisis that had an impact on the purchasing power of consumers led to a decrease in the profitability of the industry, said Oksana Yurchenko, president of the Association “Svinari of Ukraine” (ASU).

"On the eve of winter holidays, when they expected a seasonal improvement in the market situation, the traditional scenario was not implemented. You should not blame imports for this... The consequences of the coronavirus crisis "caught up" with people. The number of new outbreaks has increased, people have redirected part of the costs from the food basket to medicines. The economic crisis also had a negative effect. The HRI sector operated at minimal capacity. A significant increase in the cost of utilities also had a negative impact on the purchasing power of the population. And this despite the fact that the cost of production compared to the beginning of the year, increased by an average of 30% due to the rapid increase in the price of grain... We state that the "crisis period" has begun, which is natural for the development of the industry, because it is cyclical. 3.5 years of work in comfortable conditions are over, now is the time for testing of stability, which, unfortunately, not all market players will survive. We expect that with warming the situation will begin to smooth,” the ASU notes.

SOURCE: meatinfo