Chinese deal a £50m boost to pig sector

British pig producers have received a major boost with the doors opening on an annual trade which could soon see £50 million of pigmeat being exported to China.

The announcement of the export clearance was made yesterday by UK agriculture minister Jim Paice while on a mission to China to boost trade for British food and farming businesses.

Much of the exported pork will be offal, trotters, ears and other parts of the “fifth quarter” , less popular with British diners but which are worth a premium on the Chinese market.

Describing the Chinese market as the most lucrative in the world, Paice said: “In particular they are eating more meat, and our top-quality producers have got huge opportunities to meet that demand and help our economic recovery.”

Although the initial estimate of exports has been put at £30m for the first year, the British pig industry estimated that trade in British pork with China would soon be worth more than £50m a year.

In addition, the British pig industry aims to develop its trade in genetic material for breeding programmes as British pigs are far more fertile and productive.

British Pig Executive chairman Stewart Houston admitted getting the clearance for exports had taken a long time but he was sure it would prove to be extremely worthwhile.

“Pork is the most popular meat in China and some of the cuts which are less popular here command a premium over there,” he said.

He also revealed that work on the first consignment of British pork was under way and would soon be ready to be dispatched by Tulip, the UK’s biggest producer.

Tulip is owned by the Danish Crown Group, who are the largest pigmeat processors in Europe. In the UK, the company operates from 17 sites and employs some 8,000 people. It also owns a number of pig farms which between them produce 10 per cent of the total output of pork in the UK.

Andrew Saunders, the company’s director of agriculture, paid tribute to the many months of hard work by the team at Defra, BPEX and the National Pig Association in securing the export clearance.

“The commitment by China to use British pig meat is true testament to the quality and standards in place across the UK pig industry and provides us with an exciting opportunity to enter a developing market,” he said.

Laurent Vernet, head of marketing for Quality Meat Scotland, saw the deal as a useful opportunity for the Scottish pig industry in terms of fully utilising every part of the carcass, reducing waste and optimising returns.

“It will also be helpful in terms of getting a foot in the door for other species,” he said. “Negotiations with China are likely to be lengthy and while the progress is a positive step it is important to be realistic about expectations at this stage.”