World meat industry news

The opening of the Chinese market is of great strategic importance for the Russian pig-breeding industry. Two key factors play a role in exports, experts say.

Today, China occupies a leading position in the global import market, annually purchasing 2.5–3 million tons of pig products, including by-products. The director of the marketing and sales department of Tambov Bacon LLC, in a commentary for the Federal State Budgetary Institution Agroexport, explained what factors determine Russia’s prospects for exporting pork to China.

The first factor is the volume of pork consumed in China. The market capacity is 12 times greater than the Russian one, the expert explains - not only because of the population, but also because of the high culture of pork consumption. The very word “meat” for the Chinese means primarily pork, while in Russia it is a balance of chicken, pork and other types of meat. If in Russia pork consumption is 31-32 kg of pork per person per year, then in China it is already 40 kg. Thus, the capacity of the entire Chinese market is 58 million tons - compared to 5 million tons in Russia. At the same time, China is a pork importing country.

Currently, the main importers on the Chinese market are Brazil, the USA, and Spain. It is these countries that Russia needs to oust by presenting its range of products.

The second key factor is the specifics of pork consumption in China, a unique Asian portfolio. Asians value by-products, while in Russia such products are not in demand and manufacturers either sell them for export or send them for processing or disposal. At the same time, prices on the Chinese market are much more attractive than, for example, in Vietnam.

It is this factor of demand for special products that are not relevant in Russia at attractive prices that gives such significance to the opening of the Chinese market.