EU pork exports fell by almost a fifth in February to 99,000t, according to the latest edition of BPEX’s Pig Market Weekly.
This was a direct consequence of the Russian ban on EU pork after the outbreak of the ASF in Poland and Lithuania.
Exports to Russia declined from 24,000t in February 2013 (20% of total exports), to 400t in the same month this year.
Shipments to Belarus and Ukraine were similarly affected.
There was also a downturn in supplies to China, to which exports declined by 23% year-on-year, partly due to its ban on Polish pork.
In contrast, other Asian markets performed well, with requirements from Japan and South Korea increasing by 18% and 49% respectively. Slightly lower unit prices meant that the value of pork exports fell by 23% to €225.6 million.
Offal exports improved from the previous month, but remained at a similar level to February 2013.
The Russian ban inevitably left a similar impact on the EU offal market, but strong demand from other key buyers held up trade.
Among the key countries, there were increases from China (up 2%), Hong Kong (up 22%) and The Philippines (up 79%).
The value of offal exports in February amounted to €85.7 million, down 8% on the year, due to a similar decline in the unit price.