July 12, 2007

 

Hong Kong's live pig supplies recovering to normal levels

 

 

Live pig supplies to Hong Kong from Mainland China is slowly returning to normal as levels have reached 85 percent of normal levels in recent days, according to the Hong Kong government.

 

Live pig supply from Mainland China to Hong Kong has been dwindling in recent weeks as China copes with a

pork shortage that saw prices rising to record highs in some cities.

 

Earlier this month, live pig supply was at about 66 percent of normal levels, when daily imports fell to 3,000 at its lowest, compared to the normal level of 4,500.

 

The drop heightened the need for the government to negotiate with Beijing to expand live pig sources from the Mainland. Any pork producers wishing to export to Hong Kong must gain approval from China's authorities. 

 

Cheuk Wing-hing, acting permanent secretary for food and health, said at a meeting of a Legislative Council that Hong Kong government officials are negotiating with pig importers to ensure a stable supply of live pigs.

 

At present, one importer - Ng Fung Hong controls about 80 percent of pork imports into Hong Kong while another company, Guangnan, controls 20 percent. They are the only agents appointed by the Ministry of Commerce to supply live pigs to the territory.

 

Ng Fung Hong told legislators Tuesday that while the price of pork jumped 30 percent in the mainland, the company had maintained prices _ with only a 7 percent rise on May 31.

 

Pork supply and prices in Hong Kong depended on the mainland's supply and the market price, Ng Fung Hong's managing director Guo Jinqing told the Legislative Council's food and environmental affairs panel. Guo said the import quota, set by mainland authorities, is sufficient to meet Hong Kong's needs.

 

He also avoided charges that the supply of pigs had been reduced because prices offered by the company were too low. The company also denied profiting from reduced supplies and higher prices.

 

Since the introduction of a voluntary surrender of pig farm licenses last May, 243 out of the 265 pig farms in Hong Kong have applied to surrender their licenses.

 

Since then, Hong Kong has asked mainland authorities to increase Hong Kong's import quota to almost 1.6 million pigs per year to compensate for the reduction in the local supply.

 

Hong Kong's daily supply now includes 4,000 pigs from the mainland and 600-700 from local sources, he said. According to last year's statistics, Hong Kong consumes about 5,430 pigs every day.

 

However, Cheuk noted there had been no major increases in the auction price of live pigs.

 

About 20 pig farmers protested outside Legco Tuesday asking the government to open up the fresh pork import market and to allow local farmers to set up operations in the mainland

 

Responding to these calls, Cheuk said China's Ministry of Commerce had agreed to actively consider helping Hong Kong pig farms raise pigs on the mainland.

 

Fresh pork in Hong Kong's pork market has dropped from 51 percent in 2002 to 30 percent in April this year, as more consumers turned to frozen and chilled pork, which now accounts for 70 percent of the pork market.