BPEX is to expand its range of historical pig price reports to include an all new GB Standard Pig Price (SPP).
The data making up the new measure will be collected from a wide-ranging sample of processors in Great Britain and will measure the average weekly price for standard commercial pigs. This will cover all pigs except those that attract an explicit premium for a specific attribute such as breed, feeding regime or production system, such as Freedom Foods.
The GB SPP will be calculated using the same basic specification as the current DAPP, other than covering standard pigs only. It will be based on individual pig data that includes the gross price (before deductions) and weekly paid bonus payments.
It will not include retrospective bonus payments that are dependent on achieving contract criteria. Data providers will be audited to ensure the specification is followed.
The GB SPP will be published in the week after the pigs are slaughtered, and the figure will be produced by AHDB Market Intelligence for the first time on April 16.
BPEX director Mick Sloyan said the British pig market had changed considerably in recent years and the market information produced to help industry needed to keep up with this change.
“We recently announced the introduction of a new price series, the GB All Pigs Price (GB APP) to measure the overall pig market,” he said. “The addition of the GB SPP will provide greater insight into trends in the standard commercial pig market.
“Historic price data is vital for a well-informed and efficient industry. It’s designed to be an accurate record of the past and not a means of fixing forward contract pig prices.”
