April 27, 2007

China's Shandong province's feed output growth slowed in 2006

According to Shandong's Livestock Bureau, Shandong's 2006 feed industry continued to grow in 2006 despite bird flu, increasing output to 11.5 million tonnes, with value at RMB 29.8 billion.

However, the 100,000-tonne increase seen in 2006 was paltry compared to the 1.4-million tonne growth in 2005.

Still, with the growth recorded in recent years, Shandong's feed industry is slowly transforming itself into a mature and regulated industry, becoming a key sector for Shandong's economic development.

Development of Shandong's feed industry started in the 1980s.

In 1996, production from the entire province was only 4.8 million tonnes. It breached the 10-million mark for the first time in 2004 and reached 11.4 million tonnes in 2005.

Feed production growth was slowed and production reached 11.5 million tonnes last year due to the effects of bird flu on the market. Still, this is 2.4 times the figure in 1996. Compound feed production was 8 million tonnes, growing 74.3 percent from 1996. Feed concentrate production was 3 million tonnes, increasing 19-fold from 1996. Premix feed production was 500,000 tonnes, seven times more than the amount produced in 1996.

For the past decade, Shandong's feed industry expanded at an average of 9.1 percent annually. The feed output from the province accounts for more than 11 percent of China's total. The value of the market in 2006 was RMB 29.8 billion, ranking it 20th among the 39 industries in the province. Shandong has 1,592 feed companies with feed production capacity at 23.4 million tonnes, a growth of 185.4 percent from 1996's.