Residents buy pork at a wholesale market in Hohhot, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Oct. 24, 2021. (Xinhua/Peng Yuan)
BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- China's hog supply in the second half (H2) of this year is guaranteed and hog prices will not grow continuously and substantially, an agricultural official said on Wednesday.
"Overall, this round of hog price hikes were mainly caused by recovery-related and seasonal reasons," Chen Guanghua, an official with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, said at a press conference.
Chen noted that there will not be a "sustained and sharp increase" in hog prices as hog production is sufficient.
China's hog prices went up since late June and have seen a pullback recently.
In most years, China's hog market experiences seasonal price hikes starting in July, said Chen, adding that the continuous growth in the prices of corn and soybean meal pushed up breeding costs.
The sharp increase in hog prices was also driven by a significant rise in pork consumption amid the resumption of schools and factories and the recovery of the catering sector, Chen said.
Other factors such as hog farmers' reluctance in selling and the decline in pork imports also led to the increase in hog prices, he added.
Looking forward, Chen expected the supply of hogs in H2 will be similar to the same period in 2021, as hog production capacity is staying within an appropriate range. ■
