PORK promotion is expected to grow in the coming months, but threats of oversupply are causing some concern.
That was the message at a Pig Industry Day at Tanunda last month, when representatives of two major pork processors addressed producers about the realities of the market.
JBS Primo fresh meats group general manager Robert Wadland said the domestic market appeared “cautiously optimistic” in the long-term.
“Overall pork is a great value protein,” he said.
“Per capita, consumption of pork is more than 10 kilograms per person and it’s expected to go higher.”
But he warned oversupply, domestically and from imports, was hurting the market, with losses of about $50 a head in the value of the carcase.
Some of this was driven by cooked imported meat, such as ribs, while another issue was sow numbers returning to pre-2007 levels, before the phase-out of sow stalls.
“We don’t want to stifle growth in the industry, but it needs to be a gradual slope upwards so the market can grow in time to absorb it,” Mr Wadland said.
BE Campbell supply chain director Nathan O’Dell said there was potential for the pork industry to leverage off the back of high beef and lamb prices, but the increased amount of pork meat created issues.
“An oversupply of pork has to go into processing, which means it is competing with imports,” he said.
Mr O’Dell said meeting consumer demands was also important. This meant smaller, utility carcases, between 75 kilograms and 80kg, as any larger meant large legs and could be difficult to sell.
Boar taint was also critical.
“If a customer has a bad experience once, they won’t come back to pork at all,” he said.
Mr Wadland said there was some good news, with Australian quality standards proving a good selling point.
He said there was no similar scheme to the Pork Quality Assurance system within Australia found in other pork-producing nations.
“Australian quality will look after itself,” he said.
Mr O’Dell and Mr Wadland said there was a priority in finding a space for Australian pork in the Chinese market.
“There is definitely a niche market for us in China if we could get our foot in the door,” Mr Wadland said.
Mr O’Dell said this market was particularly good for value-added products, and by-products, such as offal.