Help sought for pig farmers

HCMC – The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has asked the Prime Minister for assistance for pig farmers who have suffered hefty losses sparked by falling pig prices.

Prices of live pigs have fallen to the lowest level since early this year and half the levels of the same period last year.

Nguyen Tri Cong, chairman of the Dong Nai Livestock Association, said live pig prices range from VND25,000 to VND27,000 per kilo (US$1.1-1.2), way below VND50,000-55,000 (US$2.2-2.4) in April 2016.

Although prices of live pigs at farms have declined sharply over the past few months, pork prices have fallen slightly. According to the Dong Nai Livestock Association, pork has marked down only 10% year-on-year, benefiting slaughterhouses and distributors.

“Many livestock farmers may go out of business and those effectively managing production costs can survive,” said Cong.

MARD has adopted immediate and long-term solutions to ensure sustainable development for the domestic livestock sector. MARD suggested the Government tell banks to freeze loans for some livestock farmers and animal feed traders.

MARD proposed the Government request large meat distributors such as Vissan, Hapro Hanoi and Saigon Co.op to stock up on pork for distribution in the coming months. Besides, Vietnam should suspend pork imports from foreign countries.

According to the General Statistics Office, the number of pigs raised in Vietnam has increased by 1.5-2% over the same period of 2016.