The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Dong Nai’s administration on Thursday discussed measures to rescue the southern province’s pig-farming industry following the precipitous drop in the prices of live pigs.
The province has around 1.7 million pigs waiting to enter the market even as the price of live pigs has declined to a record low of VND22,000-24,000 (US$0.97-1.1) per kilogramme, Phan Minh Bau, deputy director of the province Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said.
The price has gone down nearly VND30,000 since last year, he said.
China has stopped buying live pigs from Viet Nam since last November, and it is hurting farmers since they had relied greatly on that market.
While pig breeders lose VND7,000-11,000 per kilogramme, customers fork out VND80,000 for a kilogramme of pork at wet markets and VND100,000 at supermarkets.
Bau blamed this on intermediaries, processors and distributors, saying that between leaving farms and reaching customers pig prices increase by VND44,000-64,000 per kilogramme.
Nguyen Tri Cong, chairman of the Dong Nai Livestock Association, said authorities should allow qualified co-operatives to slaughter pigs and sell them directly to workers at industrial parks at 40 per cent lower prices.
It would still be profitable if pork is sold at VND40,000-50,000, he said.
Deputy Agriculture Minister Vu Van Tam welcomed the suggestion and promised his ministry would work with its Chinese counterpart to resume exports to the neighbouring country.
On the same day, Agriculture Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong sent a communication to all cities and provinces that calls on them to persuade pig slaughterhouses and processors to keep buying pigs and keep them in cold storage or process the meat.
He has called on companies making pig feed and veterinary medicines to reduce their prices to help farmers in this time of difficulty.
The ministry called on local authorities to strengthen links between farmers, co-operatives and enterprises.
Firms and co-operatives should play key roles in monitoring product quality and food safety, and ensure demand for and supply of animal husbandry products are balanced.—VNS