Search
Better Farming OntarioBetter PorkBetter Farming Prairies

Better Pork Featured Articles

Better Pork magazine is published bimonthly. After each edition is published, we share featured articles online.


It's the pork, stupid!

Monday, October 3, 2011

Forget the cost of gas, housing, most food and wages. China has a simple index of its inflation. It is based on the price of pork, which is rocketing upward. That has the attention of the world's most populous country's top leader, Premier Wen Jiabao.

According to a government of China press release issued in the summer, Wen said "the government holds the unavoidable responsibility of stabilizing pork prices." He urged relevant authorities to announce policies as soon as possible to encourage more pigs to be bred and stabilize the pork market.

Price increases are good for pig farmers, according to the Chinese government's website, but increased urban residents' living costs.

Reports in North America indicate that the Chinese government pulled more than 200,000 tonnes of pork out of cold storage to try to keep prices down. In addition, China is importing pork from the United States. Unlike selling to Japan, marketing pork to China is a low-margin business. Carcasses are split down the middle and each half is cut into a shoulder, a middle and a ham, and then frozen. In the spring, China began requiring that imported meat products have individual weights marked on them.

The biggest concern for North American sellers is that the pork be free from the widely used growth promotant, ractopamine. China has a zero tolerance for residues. In the first quarter of 2011, China imported nearly 140 million pounds of U.S. pork and pork products valued at $94 million. BP
 

Current Issue

April 2025

Better Pork Magazine

Farms.com Swine News

Canada Post strike possible in May

Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Canadians could experience a disruption in Canada Post services in May. Canada Post and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) have agreed to resume contract negotiations this week. The two parties last sat around the bargaining table in March for mediated talks that concluded... Read this article online

How will Carney work with Farmers?

Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Prime Minister Carney has a mandate to lead the country, but the country is quite divided, and much of the agriculture industry feels alienated. Prime Minister Mark Carney and Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre have both pledged cooperation on key issues like U.S. tariffs. As the new... Read this article online

Sheep farmers win Ontario’s Outstanding Young Farmers

Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Sheep farmers and wool producers from Wallenstein, Ont. are Ontario’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2025. “It’s great to be recognized by your peers in the industry with an award like that,” Ryan Schill told Farms.com. “When we started the sheep farm, there were people questioning us... Read this article online

Canadians elect Liberal government

Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Canadians made their voices heard on April 28 and elected a Liberal government. Prime minister-designate Mark Carney’s party won 168 seats as of Tuesday morning,Elections Canada says. A party needs 172 seats to earn a majority government. The Liberals could hit that threshmark... Read this article online

BF logo

It's farming. And it's better.

 

a Farms.com Company

Subscriptions

Subscriber inquiries, change of address, or USA and international orders, please email: subscriptions@betterfarming.com or call 888-248-4893 x 281.


Article Ideas & Media Releases

Have a story idea or media release? If you want coverage of an ag issue, trend, or company news, please email us.

Follow us on Social Media

 

Sign up to a Farms.com Newsletter

 

DisclaimerPrivacy Policy2025 ©AgMedia Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Back To Top