August 28, 2007

China allocates US$15.2 million to Anhui province to spur pig farming

The central government, in an effort to boost pig farming in Anhui province, is offering RMB 115 million (US$15.2 million) to help the province set up more pig breeding plants on top of other subsidies, Dong Weixing, director of the provincial animal husbandry bureau said.

Pork prices in the province dropped two percent in mid August from a month earlier as consumers began to turn to beef, mutton and chicken on account of the high pork prices, said Dong.

More pigs will be born in the fall to increase supply and the country has introduced various measures such as subsidies and insurance programmes to encourage producers to take up pig farming again, Dong said, adding he is confident these measures would curb pork prices, which have risen sharply in recent weeks. 

Meanwhile, pork prices have dropped slightly in the Yangtze River Delta region due to an increase in supply, local media reported.

The region encompasses Shanghai and its surrounding metropolitan areas, one of the most densely populated parts of China.

In neighbouring Zhejiang Province, the wholesale price dropped 1.5 percent or RMB 0.24 per kilogramme last week to RMB 15.06.