The Netherlands sells much less bacon to the UK

The Netherlands is selling much less pork to the United Kingdom. Other European countries are also exporting less, with the exception of Germany, where sales are actually rising strongly. Figures from AHDB Pork show that the UK imported 350,335 tonnes in the first six months of this year. This is a decline of 5.6% compared with the same period last year. Imports of bacon, for which the UK is known, fell above average quickly by almost 10% to 75,987 tonnes. The Netherlands is the second largest supplier of pork after Denmark. Both countries saw sales fall considerably. The Netherlands sold 14% less pork, down to 61,579 tonnes, while Denmark saw sales shrink by 17.6%. Many other European countries also saw sales to the UK decline. Germany is an exception with an increase of 40.5% to almost 60,000 tonnes. The rapid rise is because Germany was unable to export to the UK for a period at the beginning of 2025 due to an outbreak of foot and mouth disease (MKZ). More slaughterings in the UK The fact that the UK imports less pork is because more pigs are being slaughtered domestically, resulting in higher domestic meat production. In the second quarter, the number of slaughterings rose by 2.7% to 2.6 million head, according to figures from the British government agency Defra. In addition to the higher slaughter figures, the average slaughter weight is also higher.