PODCAST: African Swine Fever—Changing the Protein Landscape and Economy

Russell Barton sits down to discuss the severity and implications of African Swine Fever, herd losses, impact on exports, and a firming market. Also covered: Easter holiday impact on hams.

China Reports Latest African Swine Fever Outbreak, in Far West

China on Friday said it had confirmed a new outbreak of African swine fever, in the far western region of Xinjiang, as the highly contagious disease spreads through the world’s largest hog herd.

The outbreak in Xinjiang’s Shule county has killed 92 animals on two farms with a total of 583 pigs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said in a statement on its website.

China has reported about 120 cases of ...

Pork Checkoff Acknowledges “Tough Decision” to Cancel World Pork Expo

The National Pork Board today offered a statement of support to the National Pork Producers Council as it took the extremely rare step to cancel the 2019 World Pork Expo scheduled June 5-7, 2019, in Des Moines.

“We completely understand that to cancel World Pork Expo is a tough decision that no one wants to make,” said Steve Rommereim, president of the National Pork Board and a pig farmer from Alcester, South Dakota. “But when it comes to the ongoing spread of African swine fever in Asia and Europe, caution must come first. We stand by our pig-farming partners in doing anything we can to stem the spread of this disease.”

The Pork Checkoff has been helping to inform producers’ response to African swine fever since ...

Rabobank: Rising African Swine Fever Losses to Lift All Protein Boats

Production losses from African swine fever (ASF) have eclipsed initial estimates. The Chinese pork production shortfall, along with shortfalls in Southeast Asia, will create challenges and opportunities for animal protein exporters.

In 2019, we expect Chinese pork production losses of 25% to 35% in response to ASF. Reports of extreme losses (over 50%) are limited to confined areas.

Sizable breeding herd losses will delay the Chinese pork industry’s recovery. Rebuilding efforts will be further complicated by the risk of recontamination, despite ...

NPPC Cancels 2019 World Pork Expo as Precaution

The National Pork Producers Council's board of directors today announced its decision to cancel World Pork Expo 2019 out of an abundance of caution as African swine fever (ASF) continues to spread in China and other parts of Asia. World Pork Expo, held each June at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, hosts approximately 20,000 visitors over three days, including individuals and exhibitors from ASF-positive regions. African swine fever affects only pigs and presents no human health or food safety risks. There is currently no vaccine to treat the swine disease.

"While an evaluation by veterinarians and other third-party experts concluded negligible risk associated with holding the event, we have decided to exercise extreme caution ...

NPPC Statement on Illegal Pork Seizure 

On March 15, 2019, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that it intercepted a large shipment of illegal pork products from China before it could enter the United States. The contraband shipment, which will be safely and securely destroyed in accordance with U.S. government policy, reportedly contained products derived from pork, such as flavorings in ramen noodles, and did not include fresh meat. It is illegal to import pork products from countries, like China, that are positive for African swine fever (ASF), a disease that only affects pigs and that poses no human health or food safety risks, to the United States. The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) issued the following statement.

“Preventing the spread of African swine fever to the United States is our top priority. We are thankful to CBP and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for their increased vigilance and the expanded resources they have put in place to prevent ...

USDA Strengthens Partnerships and Protections to Keep African Swine Fever Out of the Country

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced additional steps to keep African swine fever (ASF) from entering the United States, even as the disease spreads internationally. These steps strengthen the protections announced last fall after the deadly swine disease reached China. The goal remains to protect our nation’s swine industry from this disease. ASF does not affect people, nor is it a food safety issue.

In coordination with the pork industry, USDA’s Undersecretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, Greg Ibach, has stated the following enhanced activities to intensify multi-agency efforts toward the prevention of ASF’s entry into the United States ...

ANALYSIS: African Swine Fever in China; Outbreak Update

The outbreak of African Swine Fever in China has placed an ominous cloud of uncertainty over the global pork market, which could in turn impact other protein categories as well.

It cannot be overstated how big of a player China is in the pork market, as it is home to half of the globe’s hogs. At roughly 55 million metric tons, China’s domestic annual pork consumption is nearly as large as all other countries combined (49.7% of global pork consumption in 2018). With that in consideration, any threat to their supply of hogs is deemed quite critical because it has the potential to... 

Pork Quarterly Q1 2019: Another Uncertain Year – with More Complex Disease and Trade Issues

As 2019 gets underway, we see another year full of potential in global pork, with growth in production and demand in many parts of the world. Yet this is overshadowed by the uncertainty created by complex disease and trade issues, as can be read in the just-released RaboResearch report ‘Pork Quarterly Q1 2019: Another Uncertain Year – With More Complex Disease and Trade Issues’.

Report summary

Rising disease pressures are challenging the global market. “African swine fever (ASF) stands out as the single biggest challenge facing global pork in 2019,” according to Chenjun Pan, Senior Analyst – Animal Protein. “The changes ASF will bring create opportunities for some, and threats for others.” China’s need to lift imports will incentivise continued growth in key exporting countries, but how much pork China will import remains ...

China Confirms New African Swine Fever Outbreak in Guizhou Province

China's agriculture ministry on Friday reported a new outbreak of African swine fever in the southwestern province of Guizhou, which has killed 42 pigs on a farm of 156 pigs

China has already reported more than 90 cases of the incurable disease since it was first detected in the country in early August ...

China Confirms New African Swine Fever Outbreak in Fujian Province

China on Thursday said it had confirmed a new outbreak of African swine fever in Fujian province, as the highly contagious disease spreads through the world's largest hog herd.

The outbreak in Sanming city in Fujian killed 27 animals on a farm of 11,950 pigs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said in a statement on its website ...

China Reports first African swine Fever Outbreak in Guangdong Province

China confirmed on Wednesday the first African swine fever outbreak in southern Guangdong province, as the highly contagious disease continues to spread through the world's largest hog herd.

The outbreak in Zhuhai city in Guangdong province killed 11 animals in a slaughterhouse, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said on its website.

Guangdong is a major pork consuming region and heavily relies on supplies from other provinces. The first outbreak of the disease reported there will likely further push up prices in the region, analysts said.

Hog prices in Guangdong province were around 16 yuan ($2.32) per kg on Wednesday, up 10 percent since early August, when the country reported its first African swine fever outbreak, according to data provided by consultancy China-America Commodity Data Analytics, due to a ban on live hog transport ...

China Reports New African Swine Fever Case in Central Province of Hubei

China's agriculture ministry said on Wednesday it had confirmed a new outbreak of African swine fever in the central province of Hubei.

The disease killed 4 out of 821 pigs in Luotian county, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said on its website.

China has reported around 50 outbreaks of the African swine fever since...