Dear readers,
Some good news from our industry:
- The Vall Companys Group has formed a strategic partnership with the Argentinian firm Pacuca through a $14 million participatory loan, which will provide it with an equity stake in the South American enterprise within a span of two years .This arrangement strengthens the international expansion strategy initiated by the Spanish group in 2016 and enhances its footprint in Latin America, where it is already active in countries such as Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay, Brazil, and Chile. Pacuca encompasses the entire pork supply chain within a single organization: it includes feed production (50,000 tons annually), livestock farming (7,000 breeding sows and 85,000 pigs for fattening), and processing through Carnes Porcinas Seleccionadas, which has the capability to handle 2,000 animals per day .Additionally, the company markets fresh meat and processed items under the Cabaña Argentina label through seven of its own direct retail outlets.
- The Philippines is enhancing its swine restoration initiative in response to African swine fever (ASF), with plans to acquire 32,000 breeding gilts .This effort is being carried out by the Department of Agriculture in the Philippines as part of a larger strategy to rejuvenate the industry .The government project seeks to restore pig populations following losses from ASF and improve the production capabilities of the sector. The focus of the program is on replenishing breeding stock to guarantee a sustainable recovery of production, as opposed to simply stabilizing the market in the short term .The main goal is to obtain female pigs of reproductive age that will form the basis for rebuilding the herd. The execution is managed through the National Livestock Program, with the government aiming to create a systematic method for repopulating rather than relying on sporadic animal distributions.
- As stated by Kadri Kaugemand, who leads the Food Safety Department within Estonia’s Ministry of Agriculture, African Swine Fever(ASF) remains a critical danger to pig farming, and its effective management necessitates collaborative efforts .The transmission of the virus can occur not just through direct animal interaction but also through contaminated surroundings such as soil, feed, or even residue on shoes. The military’s participation is associated with the nature of their operations: during training drills, personnel traverse regions that are frequently unreachable by civilian agencies .This allows for quicker identification of deceased wild boars, which are key carriers of the virus. In this collaboration, military staff have been directed to stay alert and notify the Agricultural and Food Board of any wild boar remains they encounter, which oversees veterinary oversight. Consequently, the deployment of military assets for ASF surveillance is a component of a larger initiative aimed at enhancing biosecurity in the area, where the ongoing spread of the virus continues to threaten livestock farming and food safety. An approach also used in Belgium, the Czech Republic, Italy and Spain. Maybe more countries should use this in the fight with ASF.
Events calendar:
- The OPORMEX 2026 Congress is the most important meeting point for Mexico’s swine industry. This event brings together producers, specialists, authorities, and industry leaders. In the 2026 edition, OPORMEX will feature Germany as the guest country. The congress will be held at the Vidanta Resort in Riviera Nayarit between 12-16 of May.
- InterFood Astana is an international trade fair held annually, with a clear focus on the food and beverage industry, one of the most important industry gatherings in Central Asia. The fair takes place on 3 days from Wednesday, 13.05.2026 to Friday, 15.05.2026 in Astana, Kazakhstan.
- TUTTOFOOD, the international trade fair, is a key platform for innovation, quality, and diversity in the food and beverage industry. The fair takes place on 4 days from Monday, 11.05.2026 to Thursday, 14.05.2026 in Rho, area of Milano, Italy.
- Food & Drinks is an annual, specialized trade fair for the food and beverage industry, held each spring in the Moldovan capital, Chișinău. The fair will take place on 4 days from Thursday, 14. May to Sunday, 17. May 2026.
- SIAL China is a leading international trade fair for food and beverages, held annually at the Shanghai New International Expo Center (SNIEC). The fair will take place on 3 days from Monday, 18. May to Wednesday, 20. May 2026.
- In our area, the 32nd Alföldi Animal Husbandry and Agricultural Days will be held on May 14–16, 2026, in Hódmezővásárhely, Hungary. This major regional exhibition and trade fair brings together industry professionals, breeders, and agricultural machinery, attracting thousands of visitors to the Hód-Mezőgazda Zrt. Exhibition Centre. See you there!
- The leading event in the field of the Serbian agribusiness, the 93rd International Agricultural Fair, will be held from May 16 to 21 at the Novi Sad Fair. Discover the latest world developments in agriculture, mechanization and the food industry in one place! I will visit this exhibition.
Problem Solution
Mexico suspended pork imports from the United States on April 30 after the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed the presence of pseudorabies virus(Aujeszky desease) antibodies at a commercial farm in Hardin County, Iowa. The decision by the National Service for Agrifood Health, Safety and Quality (Senasica) disrupts the main flow of pork to the largest importer of U.S. pork, with an immediate effect on trimmings, offal, and other meat products. As the Chinese export is also facing disruptions due to the chaotic tariff policy of president Trump, it could be a major challenge for the U.S. pork.
The European pig industry also has a new challenge, the foot-and-mouth disease(FMD). Last year we had a “warning”, the Hungarian and Slovakian cattle outbreaks, with indirect effect on the pig and pork. This year we see direct contamination of pig farms in Cyprus and we read about a “curious disease” in cattle, spreading from Russia to China.
If we look back to the last 10 years, ASF is the permanent challenge in Europe. To be honest, I did not have great expectations from the eastern European country’s reactions. When the disease reached Germany, I had high hopes: fast, professional reaction. I may be wrong, but the results did not support my expectations.
We tend to follow the German pig quotation and their problems affected all of us, as most of the contracts were based on this value. Now the Spanish ASF leaves a lot of meat on the European market and the retailers trend to “forget” the long standing practice of using the German quotation as basis of pork purchasing. Meanwhile, the pork price on the shelves did not always follow the evolution of the prices imposed by the increasingly powerful retail buyers to the pork suppliers. In the typical pig/pork market chain we have 3 levels before pork reaches the market:
- The piglet producers: they were making profit until this week, now the table is red also in their side
- The pig farmers: loosing money for more than half a year
- The slaughterhouse: they had a few good weeks in the last half a year, not enough to support the current situation
What could we do?
The Coordinator of Farmers’ and Livestock Breeders’ Organizations (COAG) of Spain states that there has been a dramatic increase in the disparity between the price farmers receive and the supermarket price for pork, surging from 252% to 431% between April 2024 and April 2026 as indicated by the Farm Gate Price Index (IPOD). Farmers are currently earning 28.9% less than they did two years ago, receiving €1.30 per kilogram instead of €1.83 per kilogram, while consumers now spend €6.90 per kilogram in retail stores, marking the highest price noted in the analyzed data set .The organization is also calling for the re-establishment of the official publication of prices from farm to retail, a process that the Ministry managed until 2017 .“This is a significant request .It aims specifically to enhance transparency within the public sector.” The information from IPOD shows that the decline in farm gate prices that occurred throughout 2025 and early 2026 did not translate to lower prices for consumers at any time .Instead, prices in supermarkets kept increasing while farmers suffered a reduction in earnings along with heightened costs due to the situation in Iran .The gap between farm prices and retail has escalated from €3.52 to €5.31 per kilogram.
Is the collection and publication of this data by a statal authority putting enough pressure on the retail to share some profit down the chain? Is this a pair of problem/solution?
