The short supply of China's live pig will not change
"fundamentally" until the second quarter next year, Bi Jingquan,
vice minister of the National Development and Reform Commission
(NDRC) said on Tuesday.
"Although price hike of pork and piglets and related
governmental policy incentives have encouraged farmer to raise more
pigs, pig raising still takes a period of time," Bi told a press
conference. "Since the number of piglets depends on the number of
sows in stock, it could take about one year and a half for piglets
to grow up to sows, which in turn bear more piglets for sale," he
said.
The official said a short-term turbulence in pork market is
"inevitable", adding the demand for pork could rise as weather
becomes cooler and the mid-autumn festival and the National Day
draw near.
"But in the long run, the pork price is unlikely to increase by
a large margin," said the official.
"Despite a decrease in the number of live pigs for sale, the
output of beef, mutton, poultry and eggs have been on the rise
since this year," Bi said, citing the production of milk had been
increasing 24 percent annually in recent years.
"That is to say, the supply of non-staple food as a whole is
sufficient, which will also curb the price hike of pork to some
extent," he said.
(Xinhua News Agency September 4, 2007)
