Moves to tackle “broken” pork supply chain welcomed

Defra has committed to regulate pig contracts to support the supply chain and provide greater certainty across the sector.

New regulations for written contracts were announced today (6^th April), in a bid to help the sector cope with challenges including rising costs and labour shortages.

The move follows a public consultation last year, which received nearly 400 responses from producers, processors and others in the supply chain. It revealed an appetite for legally required written contracts to remove uncertainty and ambiguity – with the majority of respondents supporting the implementation of legislation.

The National Pig Association (NPA) welcomed the move, but noted that the powers are limited and further action must be taken to address other issues in the supply chain.

NPA chair Rob Mutimer said: “We are very pleased that Defra has taken on board the very clear messages from the NPA and the wider industry about what needs to be done to fix our broken supply chain.

“For too long, producers have been treated poorly and contracts have not been worth the paper they were written on – and we have seen some disastrous consequences of that behaviour over the past two years.

“We believe the measures set out today, including legal underpinning for contracts that delivers a fair transparent and negotiable contract system, will help deliver a fairer and more sustainable environment for pig producers.”

Defra also committed to developing and collecting more supply chain data, particularly in relation to wholesale price transparency and national slaughter numbers.

NPA chief executive Lizzie Wilson said the organisation was pleased with the pace at which Defra has worked to get to this point. Defra is also pledged to work with the industry on the next phase of policy development.

However, she added: “But the bottom line is that, while legislative changes can set the framework for reform between the producer and whoever they have their contract with, real change must also come from within the supply chain. The Government alludes to this with their commitment to share their findings with the Competition and Markets Authority.

“But we have lost almost one-fifth of our pig breeding capacity as a result of two years of crisis. Pig prices might be rising, but pig producers are still hurting badly, with huge financial holes to fill, and confidence remains low.

“That will only change if pig farmers can see that retailers and processors have got the message that fundamental reform is needed if we are to secure supplies of high welfare, environmentally friendly assured Red Tractor British pork in the future.”