Pig farmers in plea for Covid help package
BRITISH pig farmers have called for a £3.2 million Covid support package to recognise the impact of overweight pigs on producers’ businesses.
The request, made by the National Pig Association (NPA) to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), follows the recent announcement of schemes in Scotland and Northern Ireland in March that reflect pandemic-related losses suffered by producers.
The British pig industry has been hit financially on two main fronts by the wave of Covid-19 outbreaks in pork plants.
Higher carcase weights as a result of the backlog of pigs that has built up has led to price deductions being imposed by processors, while the suspension of Chinese exports from key plants, including Cranswick’s Watton, Pilgrim’s Ashton and Quality Pork Limited’s Brechin sites, are costing the industry an estimated £600,000 per week.
The NPA submitted a request on March 22 to Defra for a £3.2 million compensation package for UK pig producers that reflects deductions for overweight pigs.
Zoe Davies, chief executive of the NPA, said Defra has “taken a very keen interest” in the plight of the pig sector in recent months and, while it would be unprecedented for it to award this type of funding, she said these were clearly unprecedented times and was thankful that Defra was giving it serious consideration.
“The entire UK pig sector has been hit by this situation and, given that compensation has been paid to other sectors, such as dairy, we believe we have a very justifiable case,” she added.
The NPA’s call comes as the British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) has highlighted the £15/pig loss to processors from the China export suspension.
The trade body’s chief executive, Nick Allen, said this was based on the difference between what the Chinese market pays and what can be earned in alternative markets for the pork.
He added: “With the Watton and Ashton sites typically killing around 40,000 pigs a week, it is costing the industry around £600,000 per week.”