Pig industry cumulative losses hit £700m – AHDB

AHDB’s latest figures estimate the cost of pork production in September at 224p/kg deadweight – assuming average technical performance for the 12 months ending on 30th June 2022.

For September, SPP and APP are 200p and 203p/kg deadweight respectively. On a full economic basis, pig producers performing at an average level of technical performance will be losing £18 to £20 per pig slaughtered, AHDB reported.

However, assuming the cost base is the same, pig producers performing at the same technical level as those in the top third, will have an estimated full economic cost of production of 194p/kg deadweight.

The top third is based on pigs weaned per sow per year for breeding stages and feed conversion ratio for rearing and finishing.

This higher productivity should mean those producers break even or possibly have a small positive net margin, AHDB said.

The cumulative loss across all producers since October 2020 is now estimated at over £700m. This is calculated using the overall average performance of the industry, the numbers of clean pigs slaughtered and the AHDB cost of production estimations.

Movement continues to be seen in interest rates, feed, energy and fuel prices. Compound spot feed prices eased slightly during the summer but increased slightly in September – though they have not returned to the peak levels seen in May and June.

Short and long-term interest rates have increased, while fuel prices continue to fluctuate – reflecting the movement in oil prices – but remain at an elevated level compared to 2021, AHDB added.