Vietnam to boost pork production for domestic market

Vietnam will boost its pork production from the current one million tonnes to 3.9 million tonnes to serve the increasing demands of the country's estimated 90 million people, said Deputy Director Nguyen Thanh Son.

 

To achieve the plan, the husbandry department should establish breeding farms in the Song Hong (Red River) Delta region and areas in the central Vietnam.

 

He said pig raising was a traditional and important activity for Vietnamese farmers, who raised 75-81% of the pork needed to serve domestic needs.

 

However, pig epidemics have caused losses in recent years. In late March, an outbreak of blue-ear pig disease forced the culling of 100,000 pigs and left hundreds of thousands of local pork unsold.

 

Department data shows that there are between 130-140 large-scale breeding centres in the country with more than 300,000 of the country's total 4.17 million sows.

 

Data also showed a sharp rise in the number of slaughterhouses in recent years, but that most of them use out-of-date technology. Among the total 970 houses in the nation, only 35 are equipped with modern equipment.

 

''Better connections to breeding farms would help the modern slaughterhouses take full advantage of their potential,'' said Son.

 

Mai Huy Tan, general director of the Duc Viet Joint Stock Company, said it was necessary to clarify the responsibilities and tasks at every step of the husbandry process, from raising, processing, transportation and distribution.