Pig market: Germany shrinks--Spain is growing.
Has become the pig farming in this country more than doubledsince the accession of Spain to the EU In 1986. By then nearly 14 million pigs, the Spanish population has risen on current 28.3 million in the Dec. 2015. In comparison, the German pig farms has been increased from 22 million to 27 million animals.
Thus, Spain ahead of Germany has set place in the EU on the 1. Spain ranks after China and the United States in 3rd place at world level. Left the Spaniards but yet due to lower productivity behind Germany in terms of pork production. The average weights of the battle are at 85 kg, so about 10 kg below German levels.
However, the most recent livestock census shows that Spain is on the rise. While in Germany the number of sows 4% off topped was, has Spain increases its numbers of sows to 4.6%. Continuous increase in productivity is likely that Spain will win also the supremacy in the pork.
The excess production of Spanish pork have benefited from the rising domestic consumption including the summer vacationers in the first 15 years of EU membership. Recently however, production quantities exceed the consumption by more than 55%. The total export amounts 2015 to 1.25 million tonnes product weight in the form of fresh, chilled and processed pieces of internal market export goes especially towards France, Italy and Portugal.
The Spanish third-country export can be seen. Last year, 222,000 t pork went to China with a growth rate of about 37%. After Germany with just under 380,000 tonnes, Spain is the 4th-largest supplier for Chinese imports.
Increasingly, Spain on the not very simple Japanese market prevails. The share of imports has grown to now 9.3%. Thus, Spain is the 4th largest supplier for Japan.
The difficult market situation is not passed after the Russia import ban for the EU also to Spain. The export loss depresses prices. In the non-holiday period are Spanish prices significantly lower than those of the other EU Member States. During the summer months, the vacationers relieve the market so that the courses are more based on the EU average.
Germany's price quotes are setting the tone. Generally, Spanish prices are approx. 5 ct under the German quotes. The conversion from carcass weight on Spanish live quotes is not without problems, because a number of factors can be recorded only limited representative.
