Moldova increases meat production
It is expected that, by the end of the year, Moldova will produce more than 200,000t of meat, a quarter more than in 2013. The report – Socio-economic Indicators of the Republic of Moldova: January-September 2014 – also stated that the production of chicken is growing faster than the production of other types of meat.
During the first half of this year, Moldova produced about 48,000t of poultry, which indicates a rise of 28.4% year-on-year. It is expected that, this year, Moldova will produce about 65,000t of poultry – 26-27% more than in 2013. At the same time the report stated that, during the corresponding period, the production of canned meat in the country dropped by 14.4%, while the production of sausages decreased by 3% year-on-year.
Production growth has been achieved, despite the serious problems faced by the country’s meat industry this year. Ion Bizgu, head of the Union of Poultry Farmers of Moldova, said that cheap imports of poultry products, primarily from US, "hinder the development of poultry production in the country". He also called on the government to limit imports of poultry and allocate support to domestic producers.
"The government has all sorts of opportunities to bring the country’s poultry and egg industry to European standards, but in this area it is doing nothing, which may bring the industry into crisis," he stated.
However, the government has not reacted to the requests of poultry farmers.
Meanwhile, pork producers in Moldova are also faced with problems, such as the ban on pork exports to Russia, implemented in November of this year, which threatens to undermine the prospects of industry growth in 2015. Manufacturers believe these restrictions have a political colour and will not be cancelled in the foreseeable future.
"The restrictions on imports of pork [to Russia and Belarus] were introduced on the same day as the Moldovan Parliament ratified the Free Trade Zone agreement with the European Union, so many [farmers] really believe there is connection between these two events," said the representative of a local pig farm, who wished to remain anonymous.
"Some pig farmers were hard-hit by the restrictions as they were focused on exports to Russia. Now, manufacturers are forced to sell their products at reduced prices on the domestic market, which brings a negative impact to the profitability of the whole industry," he added.
However, according to Vitaly Ciobanu, head of livestock marketing policy under the Moldovan Ministry of Agriculture and Food, meat exports are playing an increasingly important role in the country’s industry.
"Moldova currently exports up to 20% of all meat production. Most of the beef and sheep meat is supplied to Arab countries, such as Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Libya. Pork production was primarily supplied to Russia. More than 80% of poultry is sold on the domestic market, primarily to processing enterprises," he said.
