October 14, 2008

Betagro Group, one of Thailand's leading integrated agribusiness companies, has opened a new pedigree pig farm to support the growth of its hygienic pork business, according to the Bangkok Post.

The THB 190 million new facility is the largest advanced specific pathogen free (SPF) pig breeding farm in Thailand, the company said. The facility will also enhance the company's capacity to supply breeders for its S-Pure brand pork processing plants and frozen processed food manufacturing plants.

The farm will target the growing demand for hygienic pork products in both local and international markets, especially Japan, said Kriengmas Punchai, senior vice-president of swine integration at Betagro Group.

The farm is fully SPF-certified, meaning that the pigs are raised in a controlled environment without the use of antibiotics, Punchai said.

The farm will have a breeding capacity of 4,200 pigs and is able to provide individual farmers and contract farms with up to 100,000 pigs per year. The investment also helps to develop quality, which would ensure disease-free pigs, Punchai said.

According to Punchai, domestic demand for pork products is expected to increase as substitute products start to become more costly than before. The outlook in the domestic market is prospective as prices of pork products continue to adjust on the introduction of new products.

The pork business this year would add about THB 3 billion in revenue to Betagro Group, Punchai said.

Betagro Group's total revenue, mainly from chicken exports and animal feed sales, is forecast to exceed THB 40 billion by year-end.

THB 1 = US$0.0293 (October 14, 2008)