February 22, 2021
 

Japan's 2020 pig meat imports fall 6% in 2020

Japan's import of pig meat and offal dropped by 6% in 2020, due mostly to lower volumes imported from the European Union - most notably from Denmark.

Shipments from EU member states fell by a quarter to 295,000 tonnes. There was also a decline in shipments from China (-37% to 17,200 tonnes).

However, the overall decline was mitigated somewhat by increased volumes imported from the United States, up by 9% to 409,000 tonnes. The EU primarily supplies frozen products, which are particularly utilised by foodservice outlets. Like most of the world, demand through this channel has fallen in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The annual decline in imports was reflected more towards the second half of the year. Figures from ALIC indicate that the volume of pork in storage increased sharply in the second quarter of 2020, likely due to disruption in normal sales outlets as a result of the impact of the pandemic. High product availability likely then dampened import demand in the second half of the year.

Stock levels have since declined, and the USDA expects import levels this year to increase slightly compared to 2020. Overall consumption last year is not considered to have fallen very significantly. Pork is a staple of home cooking and growth in this area largely compensates for lost foodservice demand.

Further downward pressure on import volumes is, therefore, not expected. Increased availability of globally traded pork, reflecting lower demand from the Chinese market, may also encourage importing if prices are more favourable.

Meanwhile, Japan has recently agreed to allow imports of Hungarian pork from areas of the country not affected by African swine fever. This reportedly follows two years of negotiations. It is also the first time Japan has reached a regionalisation agreement with an ASF-affected country.

 - AHDB