April 17, 2007

 

China's pork and poultry sector badly affected in 2006 

 

 

2006 was a difficult year for China's livestock and feed sectors, particularly so in the poultry and pork markets, while the ruminant and aquaculture sectors emerged relatively unscathed, according to a series of report produced by eFeedlink.

 

The series of niche reports covers specific market segments of the industry, including the China Livestock & feed market 2006-2007 and marked out the developments of China's feed industry over the past year.

 

The report noted that the previous year's disease outbreaks strongly curtailed demand while forcing some form of mass culling of hogs and poultry, setting the stage for early 2006's low replenishment rates of hogs and poultry.

 

Besieged by high costs and low demand, farmer's incentive to not replenish stocks was further reinforced by the second quarter's outbreaks of bird flu, further destroying the incentive to replenish exceptionally low livestock inventories, the report noted.

 

However, beef and milk supply and demand was unaffected by animal disease outbreaks and continued growing at a healthy rate, the report said.

 

Similarly, aquaculture's immunity to land animal diseases escaped the first half's strong recession, with both supply and demand growing at double digit rates, though at a slightly slower pace than previous years, the report said.

 

Still, these two sectors account for a relatively smaller portion of feed demand and animal production. Hence, ruminants and aquaculture's relative prosperity could not prevent an overall decline in livestock production and animal feed demand, the report added.

 

In the second half of 2006, when demand finally overtook livestock supplies, pushing up both prices and replenishment rates, the damage had already been done, the report noted. Aggregate feed production had become less than the previous year, except for that in aquaculture.

 

The report also predicted feed demand conditions for 2007 and the factors that would determine the recovery of the livestock production sector.

 

Besides the major grains such as corn, soy, rapeseed and their respective meals, the report also covered fishmeal, peanut meal and the meat-and-bone meal sectors.

 

Also included are reports and analysis of China's feed processing sector, its livestock industry and the minerals, trace elements, vitamins and chlorine chloride markets.