January 26, 2011
EU pork market to get private storage aid
EU agriculture ministers concurred, during their meeting on Monday (Jan 24), that they will provide private storage to help support the pork market.
The first few measures could be in place by the end of this week, said a Commission spokesman.
An extended EU advisory group has also been set up for policymakers and those with an interest in the market to study the sector and its future. EU producers of pork are where producers are losing GBP21 (US$33.25) a pig and have been struggling with losses for most of the past three years.
The costs of environmental and animal welfare requirements (which imports did not have to meet), the use of growth hormones outside the EU and the heavy dependency of many producers on the sector were all factors which should be considered, said farmer and co-op lobby group Copa-Cogeca.
