No Excuse for Pig Processors Not to Increase Prices

IFA President Joe Healy said Irish pig prices must rise over the coming days and weeks and an increase is fully justified.

Speaking at the IFA information meeting in Portlaoise on Wednesday, the Chairman of the IFA Pigs Committee Tom Hogan called on all processors to reflect the major improvements in the pigmeat trade by increasing producer prices.

He said, “A number of factors provide justification for a significant price increase, including a stronger export trade, with Asian and the important Chinese market in particular, picking up over recent weeks, tightening supplies of pigs across the EU, and a steady demand for Irish product on the domestic market”.

While quotes have remained relatively static at the €1.40c/kg-€1.42c/kg level for the past number of weeks here, other exporting European pig producing countries, such as Germany and Denmark, have experienced massive price improvements of up to 25c/kg in recent weeks.

He called on all pig processors to increase prices paid to all pig farmers to well in excess of the €1.50c/kg conservative estimate of the cost of production, as soon as possible, so that the business will at least stop being a loss making one.

Tom Hogan said it was very disappointing that representatives of the pig processors did not attend Wednesday’s information meeting.