Pig prices at their lowest since early 2022

A remarkable scene is taking shape in the pig market this week: while the German quotation stabilizes, Dutch slaughterhouses continue to lower prices unanimously. In four weeks' time, as much as 20 cents has evaporated from the pig price, and the market stands at its lowest point in three and a half years. The quotation from Vion drops by €0.05 to €1.60 per kilo. The last time this price level was on the boards was early 2022, just before the market rose sharply due to the war in Ukraine that had just begun. It is notable that Vion is not providing any explanation, whereas this was the case in previous weeks. At that time, there was a strong emphasis on the Chinese import tariffs imposed on slaughterhouses – to varying degrees. Other Dutch slaughterhouses have also lowered by 5 cents. Unanimous What stands out is that Dutch slaughterhouses, even though the Chinese import tariffs do not affect everyone equally, have been unanimous in implementing reductions in recent times. This was not the case last spring when there was competition to secure enough pigs. That fear has currently faded into the background. It is also notable that Dutch slaughterhouses are significantly deviating from the German VEZG quotation, which has decreased by 10 cents in total over the past weeks. The only excuse for this is that German slaughterhouses are not affected by the tariffs in China, but they also cannot export to the Asian country due to African swine fever. Margin recovery With the reductions of 20 cents, Dutch slaughterhouses have implemented margin recovery, according to various sources in the market. This also becomes clear from the weekly changes in the DCA pork cuts. In recent weeks, the raw material value of the carcass has fallen by more than €0.10 per kilo. It should be noted that the pig prices increased more sharply than the raw material value this spring. Disappointing For the pig sector, the price developments are downright disappointing. There is not yet a price crisis, but the relatively good earnings of recent years are temporarily a thing of the past.