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According to Eurostat, Portugal’s total swine beginning stocks in 2020 increased 2.2% compared to the previous year. At the same time, total slaughter declined 4.6% to 5.3 million head due to the strong Portuguese live swine exports to Spain. As a result, Portuguese pork production decreased 2.2% to 358,000 tons of pork.
Since June 2021, Spain has reduced its live hog imports due to the decline in Chinese pork demand, increasing pressure on the pork meat market in the Iberian Peninsula. With less domestic pork consumption and more Spanish meat supply, the Portuguese slaughterhouses were unable to maintain the growth rate in 2021 as initially predicted by the Portuguese pork sector. Portuguese official data shows a stable swine slaughter and pork production from January to October 2021, compared to the same period of the previous year.
The structure of the Portuguese swine sector is such that approximately 30% of piglets and 70% of hogs are slaughtered. The production of piglets is mainly destined for the hospitality sector, events, and celebrations. In 2020 and 2021, Portuguese piglet producers were strongly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the closure of the hospitality sector. For this reason, the Portuguese industry expected a decline in piglet slaughter in 2021 but compensated for it by an increase in hog slaughter. Carcass weight continued to be as high as in 2020, due to the reduction of piglet production, resulting in around 361,000 tons of pork.
Portugal is not self-sufficient in pork, as its domestic pork production meets 86 percent of its domestic pork consumption. Thus, Portugal is still a net importer of pork, although its import trend has declined in the last years. In 2020, Portugal’s pork imports stood at 123,000 MT CWE, valued at $382 million, which were mainly sourced from the EU, and mostly from Spain.
In 2020, Portugal’s total pork exports continued to grow another 31 percent to 64,812 CWE and were valued at $158 million, mainly due to the strong jump in exports to China. In 2020, Portuguese pork exports to China grew 278 percent and were valued at $65 million, becoming the biggest export market for Portuguese pork and surpassing total pork exports to the EU. However, during the first ten months of 2021, total Portuguese pork exports declined five percent because of lower Chinese pork demand. Other Portuguese pork markets outside the EU (namely Spain) are Angola, the UK, Japan, and Switzerland.
January 25, 2022/ USDA/ United States.
https://apps.fas.usda.gov
