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According to the quarterly report of the General Subdirectorate of Livestock and Hunting Productions of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pig production in Spain has experienced a notable increase between January and April 2024. In the first four months of this year, 18.1 million heads were slaughtered, representing an increase of 2.8% in tons and 1.9% in number of animals compared to the same period of the previous year.
This growth occurs in the context of stability in the pig inventory in Spain, which stood at 34.4 million heads in December 2023, reflecting a slight increase of 1.1% compared to December 2022. Despite these increases, the number of pig farms has decreased by 4.7% compared to the previous year, continuing the decreasing trend observed since 2015, with a total variation of -4%.
Regarding foreign trade, total exports (intra-EU and extra-EU) of pork between January and April show a slight recovery, with an increase of 2% in the volume exported compared to the same period of the previous year. However, exports to non-EU countries have decreased by 5.6% in the same period. China remains the main destination for Spanish pork exports in the first four months of 2024, although with a marked decrease of 13.3%.
Carcass prices have also seen significant variations. In week 26 of 2024, the price of class E carcass stood at €223.9/100kg, with a decrease of 9.3% compared to the same week of the previous year but an increase of 6.5% compared to the previous quarter and an increase of 1.2% compared to the community average.
Regarding consumption, a slight decrease has been observed in per capita consumption of fresh pork and processed pork products. In the first quarter of 2024, the average per capita consumption of fresh pork was 9.03 kg, while that of processed products was 10.24 kg, with decreases of 2.7% and 2.6% respectively compared with the same period of the previous year.
July 17, 2024/ 333 Staff with data from the Quarterly Report on Pork Indicators, General Subdirectorate of Livestock and Hunting Productions, General Directorate of Agricultural Productions and Markets, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, July 2024.
