Supply - demand balance will stop importing live pigs from Thailand

	Price of pigs falls too deeply, millions of breeders to face difficulties
	Dong Thap Customs seizes three motorboats transporting smuggled pigs
	Vietnam imports additional 1,000 live pigs from Thailand

When domestic livestock meets demand, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will announce a halt toimporting live pigs from Thailand one month in advance. Photo: Nguyen Thanh

Imports increased by more than 260%

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam has approved 24 countries to export meat,meat products and poultry to Vietnam, of which 19 countries are allowed to export pork and pork products toVietnam. Currently, more than 800 enterprises of 19 countries are allowed to export pork and pork products to Vietnam.

Regarding the specific number of pork imports, in 2020, there were 130 Vietnamese enterprises importing more than 225,494 tons of pork. Import markets are mainly Russia, Poland, Brazil, Canada, Germany, the United States, and Spain, an increase of more than 260% compared to 2019.

From January 1 to January 13, 2021, Vietnam imported more than 600 tons of pork of all kinds, also mainly from Russia, Poland, Brazil and Canada.

Notably, due to the serious shortage, from June 12, 2020, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has allowed the quarantine of live pigs from Thailand to Vietnam for slaughter.

From June 12, 2020 to the end of December 30, 2020, 35 enterprises and business households imported 450,294 pigsinto Vietnam for slaughter. From January 1 to January 13, 2021, enterprises imported 53,053 pigs, of which mainly imported through Lao Bao border gate (52,761 heads).

The increase in pork imports, especially allowing the import of raw pigs from Thailand to be slaughtered from mid-June 2020, is considered a contribution to the stabilization of domestic pork supply-demand. However, many expressed concern that allowing the import of live pigs from Thailand could cause the risk of diseases spreading into Vietnam.

In this perspective, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development PhungDucTien emphasized that the import of live pigs from Thailand must closely comply with the regulations, ensuring the criteria for cross-sector monitoring of livestock. Closely supervised from Thailand, to Vietnam, pigs must also be quarantined for a certain period of time and not show any symptoms of disease before being slaughtered.

"Up to now, all cases of imported pigs have not shown any signs of disease transmission. Pigs are monitored on the Thai side, checked atthe border, and checked on the mainland again," Deputy Minister PhungDucTien said.

Stop importing live pigs when balancing supply-demand

Regarding the forecast of supply-demand and price of pork in the future, especially New Year's Day 2021, Nguyen Van Trong, Deputy Director of Department of Livestock Production (MARD), said food demand at the end of the year is forecasted to increase by 10-15% and such an increase willnot push up the price of pork, butTrongnoted the situation of cross-border pig smuggling into China. If this situation cannot be controlled, it is also difficult to guarantee the price of food in the country.

“There is still a situation of smuggling pigs across the border, there is a phenomenon of importing pigs from Thailand and then mixing Vietnamese pigs to export to China. Currently, China's pork demand is very high, at twice the price of the Vietnamese market. Therefore, traders find every way to bring pigs across the border into China to make a big profit,” said Trong.

Answering questions from Customs Newsat the recent press conference of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development about the import of live pigs in 2021, especially the halt to importing live pigs from Thailand, Deputy Minister PhungDucTien said from June 12, allowing imports of live pigs from Thailand to Vietnam, when domestic livestock meets demand, they will announce the halt to enterprises a month in advance. "It takes China 17 months to control African swine fever, Vietnam took12 months. China plans to offer three years of livestock incentives to fundamentally guarantee the supply of pork. And Vietnam will see the rate of growth. We will inform businesses a month in advance to close the import of live pigs," the leader of MARD confirmed.

Regarding the good response to African swine fever, promoting re-herds to quickly ensure the supply of pork in the future, Deputy Minister PhungDucTien said the Department of Animal Health and Drug Joint Stock Company Veterinary Center (Navetco) has assessed virulence, type and urgently embarked on vaccine research.

"Currently, Navetco Company is making very positive final steps in the production of an African swine fever vaccine while the reception and testing of the project transferred by the US side is very positive and favorable. In the future, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development will direct specialized units to continue to have more independent and objective tests and assessments on the effectiveness and efficacy of the African swine fever vaccine previously studied by Navetco. When issuing a license for production, if the results are positive, only in the first quarter of 2021, Vietnam will start commercial production of the African Swine Fever vaccine,” said Deputy Minister PhungDucTien.