Agro-industrial holding Bio-tone has announced plans to begin construction of a new multi-million pig farm and processing plant, which it claims will be the largest pork production complex in Russia.
The UK Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has agreed a £50m pork export deal with China during a delegation to the country.
Danish breeding company DanBred, is trying to reduce the risk of boar taint in pork through genomic selection, ahead of the 2018 implementation of the EU’s declaration on alternatives to surgical castration of pigs.
Russian meat processing giant Cherkizovo has taken an “investment vacation” from pig projects, citing the sector’s uncertainty on the eve of Russia’s entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The global pork trade is returning to a more normal situation after months of increased disease-related imports from Asia, according to a Rabobank report.
Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is actively spreading on countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), especially Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
When discussing meat's environmental impact, there is a tendency to focus on greenhouse gas emissions. But the production of soy for feed is also of major concern. Carina Perkins looks at the issues
Russia has reclaimed its place as the first importer of Brazilian pork, representing 29.15% of the country’s exports in April, according to the Brazilian Association of Pork Producers and Exporters (ABIPECS).
Countries of the Customs Union – Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus – have decided to create and follow a single policy on meat issues, meaning that import restrictions imposed by any of them on a third country will automatically be extended to the rest of...
Animal welfare organisation Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) has expressed concerns over member state compliance to the EU sow stall ban, as only 10 countries are expected to have made the transition by January 2013.
What sets the Danish pig industry apart is its co-operative structure, within which abattoirs are entirely owned by farmers. The first co-operative was created in 1887 and, by 1963, there were 77.
Co-operative the Tican Group has adopted several methods to improve production and ensure steady growth in the past 15 years, but the size and location of its abattoir are set to prove a challenge for the future.
As the EU sow stall ban draws nearer, Denmark’s pig industry faces a fresh set of challenges, but believes its policies on welfare, the environment and the quality of its products will carry it through.
Exporting 90% of its pork production to countries in and out of the EU, Denmark tends to be ahead of the game when it comes to food safety, environmental protection and animal welfare. But with the requirement to replace sow stalls with group pens due...
CLITRAVI, the liaison centre for the meat processing industry in the EU, has criticised the “sudden and drastic” elimination of export refunds for pig meat products implemented by the European Commission last week.
Cherkizovo Group, one of the largest Russian producers of meat and meat products in Russia, plans to increase its share in the national pork and poultry sectors from 5% and 10% to 20% and 30% respectively, research by investment company BCS has revealed.
Russian pork giant Miratorg has reported a 70% growth in production volumes for the first 3 months of 2012, reaching 57,909 tonnes (t) in live weight from 34,058t in Q1 2011.
French meat industry union Sniv-SNCP has started an “offensive strategy”, including potential court action, to combat misinformation spread by the media.
The British Meat Processors’ Association (BMPA) has criticised the European Commission’s ban on ‘desinewed meat’ (DSM), a product obtained using low pressure to separate meat from bones, calling it “a criminal waste of a valuable product”.
Russian pig farmers estimate that accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) will cost the pork industry US$68.9m a year, as the country starts cutting Customs duties for pig and pork imports.
The total amount of livestock support within the Russian state programme for 2013-2020 will exceed RUB1bn (US$24.1bn), stated Agriculture Minister Yelena Skrynnik at a recent press-conference.
The European Commission has called on Belarus to reverse a ban on exported horned livestock and pigs from the European Union, which it has imposed due to the Schmallenberg virus.
European Commissioners Karel De Gucht and John Dalli have condemned Russia’s ban on imports of live animals from the EU that came into force yesterday (21 March), calling it “disproportionate and unjustified”.
South Africa is set to impose restrictions on pork imports on the grounds of health interests, in a move that may affect all countries which export pork to the market.
UK meat professionals have criticised an American study linking consumption of red meat with increased mortality, saying it “should not be used to determine cause and effect”.
Campylobacter infections in the EU increased for the fifth year in a row in 2010, making a 7% jump to 212,064 cases, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has reported.
Animal welfare organisation Alsace Nature has filed a complaint with the European Commission against France, pointing to “regular and systematic breaching” of the EU directive on pig welfare.
High production costs and stringent sow stall legislation have discouraged many pig producers in the European Union (EU), according to a UK Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) market survey.
French craft butchers have asked for national and European regulation to make halal labelling mandatory following a transparency controversy in the Paris region.
The number of farm animals produced in the UK under welfare standards accredited by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has increased by 52% in five years, the organisation revealed.
The European Commission has granted legal protection to a ham from the northern German state Schleswig-Holstein, preventing meat traders from selling ‘Holsteiner Katenschinken’ unless it is made in its home area by traditional production.
UK cattle slaughterings dropped by 6% in the second half of 2011, mainly due to a reduction in young bull kill, Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) has announced.
The French union for pork processors (SNIV-SNCP) has called for a reform of the pig industry to maintain the country’s competitiveness on the European market.
Agri-food’s role in getting Ireland out of its economic crisis received a boost, as food exports grew at three times the rate of total merchandise exports in the first nine months of 2011.
The European Commission has banned all pork product exports from the Italian island of Sardinia to member states due to an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak.
