In China, food makes up one third of the consumer price index and pork is a big chunk of that. On average, the Chinese consume 110 pounds of meat per person per year and 65 per cent of that is pork. There are too many pigs in China, so inflation is likely to be kept in check. China needs 410 million pigs, including 41 million sows, to keep production in equilibrium, according to its central planning agency. There were 44.7 million live hogs and 48.3 million sows at the end of June, a huge increase from the year before, when there was a pork shortage and high prices.
