Dear readers,

Almost all the collected reference prices went up, and there is more good news to start the week:

• Hendrix Genetics’ subsidiary Hypor takes over the breeding stock of the KC Air Pork company in the United States, entering into a cooperation with Cornbelt Livestock Services for nutritional and advisory services.
• According to the USDA, pork export sales in the week to Jan. 25 totaled 39,900 metric tons, primarily for China.
• Conecuh Sausage, an hickory smoked sausages producer from the U.S., plans to invest $58 million to open a second production facility in the state of Alabama, creating 110 jobs.
• Canada and Ontario governments are allocating more than $13 million through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership to aid independent meat processors and abattoirs in Ontario. The funding will support 151 projects focused on enhancing meat handling and processing equipment, technologies and practices, while also covers training of the personnel. The money will go towards investments in Penokean Hills Farms, Sikorski Sausages and Townsend Butchers for equipment upgrades to boost production capacity.
• The European Commission has approved two Czech schemes with a total budget of around €1.46 billion to support farmers in preventing the spread of certain poultry and pig diseases.
• The Spanish Interporc organization and the Francisco de Vitoria University of Madrid closed a collaboration agreement in order to promote training , research , technical assistance and dissemination projects in areas of mutual interest.
• Japanese researchers have produced three piglets cloned from a pig that was genetically modified to prevent rejection of its organs in transplants to humans. PorMedTec Co., a Kawasaki-based company established by the Meiji University International Institute for Bio-Resource Research, stated that the three piglets were born on  the 11-th of February. The original genetically modified pig was produced by U.S. biotechnology company eGenesis. Normal pig organs are usually immediately rejected when transplanted into humans. To overcome this problem, eGenesis modified 10 different genes in the pig. A team consisting of researchers from Kagoshima University and Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine plans to transplant the pigs’ kidneys into monkeys to verify the safety of the organs. If all goes well, they hope to start the operations this summer.

Events calendar:

• The 55-th annual meeting of the American Association of the Swine Veterinarians, with the motto “Leading AASV into the Future”, will take place between 24-27 of February, at Gaylord Opryland Resort&Convention Center in Nashville, Tennessee.
• The twenty-ninth edition of the FOODTECH Bulgaria exhibition takes place on 5 days from Tuesday, 20.02.2024 to Saturday, 24.02.2024 in Plovdiv.
• The eighth edition of HIP – Horeca Professional Expo , opens its doors  Monday at Ifema Madrid, Spain. From February 19 to 21 , the event will be attended by more than 45,000 professionals from around the world, along with 684 exhibiting firms and 757 experts. 
• The Spanish Producers and Distributors Association convenes the meat sector to the 24th edition of its Congress of Meat and Processed Products , on February 21 and 22 at the Palau de Congressos de Lleida.

Painting of the week:

• Florence, Italy, gives place to one of the most famous and visited museums in the world, the Uffizzi Gallery. The last Medici heir donated the family’s art collection to the city of Florence, establishing one of the largest collection of Italian Renaissance art. Opened for the public since the XVI-th century, is the most visited art gallery in Italy. Painter Sandro Botticelli was also a citizen of Florence, and had Leonardo da Vinci as his junior for 7 years. Bottticelli’s paintings covered mostly religious and mythical subjects. “The birth of Venus”, exhibited in the Uffizzi Gallery, dated in the mid-1480s, depicts goddess Venus arriving at the shore after her birth.

Italian “environment activists” last week glued on the protective glass of the painting images of a flooded Tuscan city…

Carnaval

          Some of the pork meat market players seem to be shocked by the rapid increase of the German reference price in the last 2 weeks. Well, it is not quite such a surprise: in 2022, in the period between weeks 6 to 13, the German reference price increased 75 cents! Last year the period between weeks 4 and 12 has shown an increase of “only” 33 cents.

            It should not be a surprise, pigs are less available in Europe. The Spanish pig offers are decreasing, their weight continues to drop, accumulating a loss of 1.5kg in 3 weeks. Spanish pig production will also have to face 2 major challenges in the coming months: the health situation(PRRS) that is affecting pork production and the drought that is occurring in Catalonia, already limiting water usage. While the Spanish pig reference price increased just a few cents, the pork meat offers of the Spanish slaughterhouses are “adapted” to the German reference price increase.

            One of the pig industry strongholds WAS Denmark. The „Together for the Animals” agreement, agreed upon by a broad majority of the governing parties(the Socialist People’s Party, the Liberal Alliance, the Conservative People’s Party, the Radical Left, the Danish People’s Party, and the Alternative),is Denmark’s first animal welfare agreement and includes initiatives to ensure better animal welfare for production animals and pets. Initiatives specific for pigs include improved piglet survival, phasing out farrowing crates, required training for employees, raising more pigs with intact tails, regulations for sprinkler systems, anesthesia for castrating piglets, and efforts to increase sow survival.

            While the pig farmers are enjoying the reference price increase all over Europe, the slaughterhouses are caught in the middle, not being able to increase the price to the retail chains. A possible solution is the way Wallon  region of Belgium managed to treat the issue of beef price. Delhaize, Colruyt and Lidl agreed to “substantially” increase the purchasing price, while Delhaize will maintain the retail price of the beef cuts for 6 months. The measure has been agreed following the consultations and round tables held to treat the issues pointed out by the protesting farmers and will be reevaluated after three months.

            We are in the carnival period. The word is said to come from the  Latin expression “carne levare”, which means „remove meat”. This year we have an early Catholic Easter date. While Lent is starting, so does the meat industry starting to prepare the traditional Easter pork meat products. Let’s enjoy the Carnival!

European pig and piglet prices: HW= Hot weight; L= live weight;

COUNTRY	PIG(EUR)	TREND	PIGLET(EUR)	TREND	OBSERVATION
GERMANY	2,15 HW		81,5/25 kg
NETHERLANDS	1,87-2,17 HW		72,5/25 kg
BELGIUM	1,53 L		72/20 kg
DANEMARK	1,62-1,65 HW		85/30 kg
FRANCE	1,847 HW
ITALY	1,71 L115kg, 2,06 L160kg, DOC		131,6/30 kg
SPAIN	1,66 -1,68 L		86-95/20kg
PORTUGAL	2,36 HW
AUSTRIA	2,09 HW		99/31 kg
POLAND	1,38-1,84 L		81-125/20-30 kg		Partner info; no quotation
CROATIA	1,8-2 HW		106-111/ 25 kg		Partner info; no quotation
SERBIA	2,04 L		110-117/ 25 kg		Partner info; no quotation
CZECH R.	2,04-2,10 HW		69-74/ 25 kg		Partner info; no quotation
SLOVAKIA	1,65 -1,7 L		101-106/25 kg		Partner info; no quotation
HUNGARY	1,67-1,77 L		101-106/25 kg		Partner info; no quotation
ROMANIA	1,57 -1,7 L		101-106/25 kg		Partner info; no quotation