Australian pig farmers under threat
The continuous impact of drought, record levels of pig meat imports to Australia and a sturdy Australian dollar are factors that have brought the pork industry down.
Andrew Spencer, chief executive of Australian Pork Limited (APL), said these factors together, create the worst operating environment for Australian pig farmers in living memory.
Spencer said, “The greatest impact has been the skyrocketing price of feed grains, added to this have been record levels of imports displacing Australian-grown pork, particularly in the manufacturing sector.â€
Slow exports
“The high dollar has been responsible for slowing down pork exports to major export markets like Singapore. Pork normally destined for Singapore has been pushed back onto our already oversupplied domestic market, “ he added.
In dollar terms Australia’s pork industry is bleeding at a rate of around $3-4 million per week in losses, Spencer said.
Producers are currently losing on average more than $30 per pig sold.
Spencer said, “The greatest impact has been the skyrocketing price of feed grains, added to this have been record levels of imports displacing Australian-grown pork, particularly in the manufacturing sector.â€
Slow exports
“The high dollar has been responsible for slowing down pork exports to major export markets like Singapore. Pork normally destined for Singapore has been pushed back onto our already oversupplied domestic market, “ he added.
In dollar terms Australia’s pork industry is bleeding at a rate of around $3-4 million per week in losses, Spencer said.
Producers are currently losing on average more than $30 per pig sold.
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