Genesus Global Market Report- France March 2020

By
Jim Eadie
-

Genesus Global Market Report 

France_March 2020

Philippe Mallétroit – Director for France, Genesus

Hog price: price increases after a decline at the beginning of the year 

In France the hog market price started the year at levels well above last year :

Hog market price (€ per kg carcass)

Week 01

Week 02

Week 03

Week 04

Week 05

Week 06

Week 07

Week 08

Week

09

Year 2020

1,619

1,590

1,539

1,480

1,456

1,460

1,461

1,479

1,5165

Year 2019

1,171

1,1715

1,166

1,17

1,173

1,1785

1,178

1,178

1,1755

Difference 2020/2019

+ 0,448

+ 0,419

+ 0,373

+ 0,310

+ 0,283

+ 0,282

+ 0,283

+ 0,301

+ 0,341

The average market price was 1.511 € per kg carcass for the months of January and February 2020, compared to 1.1735 € for last year at the same period, a difference of approximately 32 € per pig.

However, since mid-December 2019 and until early February 2020, the price has only dropped. Various reasons for this: January promotions to follow New Year holidays, social movements (strikes in ports)… Same observation in Spain and Germany where prices also fell before starting to recover at the end of January.

On Thursday 27th February the market price was 1.531 € per kg after having increased by 2.9 cts per kg compared to the previous market from Monday 24th February.

Hog price: the gap between France and its European neighbors

France and the rest of Europe currently benefit from an upward trend although the market is more saturated following the coronavirus epidemic which is spreading worldwide (130 infected people in France on the 2nd of March). This complicates the logistics towards Asia and China, whose demand for pork is still important, but also gound for uncertainties on the Italian market, heavily affected by COVID-19.

However, when we take a look at the price in France, we can see it is clearly below the two other main European pork producing countries. At the end of February, French hog price (without premium) was 1.531 € per kg carcass compared to 2.020 € per kg carcass in Germany and 1.522 € per kg liveweight in Spain.

The price difference is so big that some French producers we met recently already think of shipping live pigs to Spain or Germany in order to get a better price.

What can be the explanation for such a price difference?

Maybe it is due to the fact France is self-sufficient for pork meat? Probably not, because both Germany and Spain are self-sufficient too.

If we would to agree with this Spanish producer (540,000 hogs marketed per year) we talked to recently: “We are absolutely not worried, nor competed by France for the export market !” Maybe it has to due to a less strong an organized French pig industry capable to export pork in, particularly in China?

Any future for pig production?

Pig production continues to decline in Europe (Germany, Denmark, etc.) and in France, with the exception of Spain, which continues to expand.

However thanks to the strong Chinese demand following African Swine Fever, prices remain at a good price level, the average price of pork in France in 2019 reached its highest level since… 1992! Many French pig producers close to retirement continue their activity to take advantage of the good prices, or simply to make up for the deficit of the past years

No doubt that when Chinese demand will drop and prices will drop, many sow farms will close. A guy in charge to set up new pig farms projects in a cooperative told me than 1 out of 3 projects will be with sows and 2 out of 3 projects with only finishing. We expect than sow inventory and the number of pigs farmers will continue to decrease sharply in the coming years in France.

Animal welfare 

On the 28th of January, the French Minister of Agriculture, Didier Guillaume, presented 15 new measures in favor of animal welfare.

The main decisions will be the prohibition of piglets castration without anesthetic by the end of 2021, and the installation of automatic watering systems (including barns with liquid feed system) in all French pig farms. In addition, in the first half of the year, the legislation will be adopted to increase veterinary checks on long-term transport.

Let us hope that these measures will meet consumer demand, and especially allow producers to get a better price

Source : MPB, Ministère de l’Agriculture

Article Source: Danish agricultural newspaper “LandbrugsAvisen”

Written by Einar Bo Thomsen on January 18, 2020

Article has been translated to English from Danish

Interview with Jørgen Lindberg – Director, Scandinavian Farms-China

Scandinavian Farms Drops Danbred

and chooses Genesus

 

It will be pigs from Canadian Genesus, who will play the lead, when the major reconstruction of the Danish-owned Scandinavian Farms Pig Industries starts in China.

Jørgen Lindberg, Director of Scandinavian Farms Pig Industries, Lianyungang, China.

You have had pigs from DanBred since you started in China in 2013. Why do you now switch to Genesus?

‘It is an important decision when choosing, which genes to build your herd on. Therefore, we have examined the market and the various suppliers very thoroughly. Overall, we think we get the best solution with Genesus, both when we look at the agreement and the terms, and when it comes to the pigs we get from Genesus.”

Were you not satisfied with DanBred’s pig?

“Yes – the pigs from DanBred have the best genes in the world, and it went well. We had both a nucleus herd with 1,600 DanBred sows that we owned together with DanBred, and a production herd with 14,000 sows and the production of 350,000 slaughter pigs annually. But we have learned that pig production in China is not the same as in Denmark. We cannot expect our employees out here to manage the pigs as we are used to in Denmark. That is why we are now switching to pigs that do not need near the same thorough care to produce good results”

What is it that the pigs from Genesus can?

“With the Genesus sows we get about 16.5 piglets per litters compared to DanBred’s 17-18 piglets. In contrast, the birth weight of the Genesus pigs is quite a bit higher and the pigs are stronger. In Chinese conditions, we believe that it is an advantage with fewer, but in turn stronger piglets, which easier will get all the way to slaughter. As another important factor, feed is 60 percent more expensive in China than in Denmark. Therefore, it is important that the pigs are strong from birth so that they utilize the feed better and reach the slaughter weight faster”.

Genesus is honoured that Danish-owned Scandinavian Farms has chosen our Genetics. We believe the preceding article summarizes the advantages of Genesus.

 

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR