Pork exports to China go hog wild in first half

Pork exports to China go hog wild in first half A representative with the U.S. Meat Export Federation said U.S. pork exports to Asia have been booming so far this year.
   Speaking at the 2008 IMS Meat Congress in Capetown Monday, Joel Haggard, USMEF’s senior vice president for the Asia Pacific region, said that in the first half of 2008 U.S. pork and pork variety meat exports to Hong Kong and China increased 324 percent in volume and 415 percent in value over the same period last year. The 2008 exports were worth nearly $440 million to pork exporters and accounted for about 6 percent of all U.S. pork production.
   He said, however, that exports to China might be affected by that country’s drive to develop its hog and sow inventories, “due to both government and private investment in large-scale pork production facilities aimed at bolstering its domestic pork production.”
   “China's interest in building new farms is also evidenced by a sharp increase in imports of breeding hogs,” Haggard said. “China is clearly hoping development of large-scale farms can help smooth out the country's rollercoaster hog market.”