News Pigs
Danish Crown immediately refuses pigs ASF region
The Danish meat group Danish Crown immediately refuses to purchase pigs from companies in the German federal states, where African swine fever (ASF) has been detected: Brandenburg, Sachsen and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
The company, which has several slaughter locations in Germany, has announced this in a letter to its suppliers. The German pig farmers' union (ISN) is outraged by the company's sudden termination. The ISN speaks of discrimination and demands that the Danish Crown reverse the decision. It also points out that the restricted areas in these provinces imposed by the authorities are only limited and that pigs can be loaded from the other parts of the provinces without any problems.
Other slaughterhouses are doing better
The ISN made inquiries with the three largest German pig slaughterhouses Tönnies, Vion and Westfleisch. These companies indicate that they simply purchase pigs from companies in the three above-mentioned provinces, without discounts. The companies are thus also responding to the call from Till Backhaus, the agriculture minister from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, to simply purchase animals from these areas.
The minister indicated that urgent efforts were made to clarify which companies are not and which companies are within the restriction zones and therefore have restrictions. He indicates that export positions are at stake for the slaughterhouses if mistakes are made. It is therefore also in the interest of pig farmers that there is proper control, says Backhaus.
Steve Wissink
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