Pork production plummets by 10.4%

Pork production in Malta plummeted by 10.4% in the first half of this year, when compared to the same period in 2015. National statistics show that 27,602 pigs were slaughtered between January and June, down from the 30,402 pigs killed in 2015 and the 34,400 killed in 2014.

Parliamentary secretary for agriculture Roderick Galdes has recently blamed the lack of long-term planning by the Pig Breeders Cooperative (KIM) for the dire situation pig breeders find themselves in, claiming that the inflated number of pig farms on the island was pushing the price of pork up while prices within the EU have dropped.

However, KIM general manager Oliver Frendo has dismissed the claim as a “ridiculous simplification” of the situation, instead arguing that the industry’s problems are rooted in growing competition from large farms in Spain and Germany.

The decline in pork production helped push total meat production in Malta down by 3.8% when compared to the corresponding period in 2015. It was partially offset by increases of 13% and 1% in the production of  beef and broiler meat respectively.

Statistics also show that producer value of animals slaughtered at licensed slaughterhouses amounted to €10.4 million, 5.9% less when compared to the first half of 2015. This resulted from a drop of 13.1% in the producer value recorded for pigmeat. However, the producer value of beef and broiler meat advanced by 6.8 and 2.2% respectively.