Floods in China disastrous for pig sector

Heavy rainfall has led to flooding in the important pig-producing province of Henan. According to Reuters news agency, as many as 1.678 large farms have been flooded and total losses are running high. It is estimated that a total of about one million animals have died. In the village of Wangfang, located north of the provincial capital of Zhengzhou, at least 200.000 chickens and 6.000 pigs have died alone. That amounts to about half of the population in the village.

An affected pig farmer says he faces a loss of about 30.000 yuan ($4.627) and farmers are concerned about the government's failure to pay compensation.

Distribution AVP
China is still not AVP-free. Since the beginning of the year, 11 new outbreaks have been officially reported. Besides the fact that many animals have been lost due to the floods, the threat of the spread of ASF is also increasing rapidly. Last summer, severe flooding in southern China caused dozens of ASF outbreaks. According to a Chinese analyst, the disease problem is much more serious than the direct losses.

The AVP virus can survive for about 10 days in feces and water and can survive for up to 100 days in dung pits. The contents of the flooded manure pits are now washed away and dispersed.

Pig price
The Chinese pig price has plummeted this year, but reached a bottom at the end of June and has been on the rise ever since. Prices have risen by about 15% since the beginning of July. The sector expects price development to continue its upward march. Fewer piglets were born in January and February. This will lead to a lower number of slaughters in July and August. In addition, the ASF threat is also increasing, which can cause greater losses and lead to a higher pig price.