Page 33 of articles about market prices

As regards exports, 2011 was an exceptional year. For the first time in its history, the EU exported more than 3 billion t of pig meat.

The number of pig farms will halve over the next ten years, the pig population will shrink and increases in scale will continue. Affordable solutions with regard to manure disposal must be implemented before 2015.

Prices increased for milk (9.2%), poultry (8.5%), cattle (8%), equines (7.2%), sheep and goats (5.2%) and pigs (4.4%) but decreased for eggs (-4.7%).

Prices of pig meat gained 3.4 percent.

EU production is expected to decline (-1%) due to poor profitability in past years and the need for investments.

Aggregate farm cash receipts for livestock are forecast to be a record $20.6 billion, which is a 9% increase over 2010 and is 12% higher than the 2006-2010 average.

China’s potential to affect the world pork market derives from the size and volatility of its domestic pork market.

European finished pig prices remained at a high level through the second half of 2011.

Prices for piglets fell even as prices for fattening pigs rose.

In 2011 Mexico exported more than 48 thousand tons of pork products.

The FAO Meat Price Index averaged 179 points, slightly down compared with November. The decline was mainly driven by pig meat, whose price dropped by 2.2 percent

Pork production should be up 1 percent in 2011 and prices for hog feeders are forecast to increase 17 percent.

Russia’s accession to the WTO cleared a major hurdle when the WTO Working Party on its accession approved, ad referendum on 10 November 2011.

China uses 105 million tons of corn a year for animal feed, with another 60 million to 70 million tons used in the processing sector for such products as starch, citric acid and ethanol.

Of the 1 billion pigs being raised in the world, about half are in China, where pork consumption is increasing as the Chinese economy develops. As a result, pork prices are rising, a trend that is impacting the world economy.

VEVA proposes the voluntary reduction of sows by 20%, going from 500.000 actual sows to 400.000.