World meat industry news

By 2025, the Kazakh Union of Pig Farmers hopes to establish pork export of around 100,000 tonnes per year.

The Kazakh Union of Pig Farmers intends to revive the pork production in the country and hopes to open the Russian and Chinese market for their exports. A recent development programme adopted by the Union plans to establish pork export of around 100,000 tonnes per year by 2025. "With the improved effectiveness and decreased production costs, an export price of around US$ 3.5 per kg would be a great deal for the Kazakhstan pig farmers", said Viktor Lim, chairman of the Kazakhstan Union of Pig Farmers.
That requires increasing the domestic pig population by 1.2 million head, according to Forbes Kazakhstan. Currently, the picture of pig production is not too rosy. The country’s pig population has gradually been shrinking over the past 2 decades. Although no African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreaks have been reported, the country’s number of pigs decreased from over 3 million in the early 1990s to just over 800,000 in 2017.

In 2017, Kazakhstan’s pig industry amounted to 94,000 tonnes. There were no export supplies at all, and the country even imported 2,400 tonnes to meet the domestic demand.