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Pork exports to China likely to slow this year

An ag economist says pork exports to China in 2021 are unlikely to top record numbers from last year.

And University of Missouri’s Scott Brown said recent input costs for pork production have put financial stress on producers.

“There’s still risk both directions of higher feed costs and lower feed costs,” Brown said. “Some risk management is much more important than we’ve seen for a while as stocks of many feedstuffs have gotten much tighter.”

He tells Brownfield while the growth in pork production is slowing down, that won’t necessarily lead to higher prices.

“We’re going to slow the growth, not probably turn it down of pork production but the China demand may mirror it very closely and, in net, we don’t do a lot to prices,” he said.

Brown said consumers’ spending habits during recovery from the pandemic, like at restaurants, will also play a large role in the pork market. Brown was a speaker at the Missouri Pork Expo last week.