The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has said pork must be eligible for price stabilisation due to the high demand for this essential good on the domestic market.

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

Despite efforts of market management forces and recent large volume of imports, pork prices have continued to increase in recent times despite 15 livestock enterprises pledging to keep prices under VND70,000 (US$3) per kilo.

On April 16, live hog prices at farms increased by 2,000-7,000 per kilo to VND88,000-92,000 in the north.

Especially, Thai Binh province had the highest price of live hogs in the country at VND92,000 per kilo, VND4,000 higher than the previous day.

Live hog prices on April 16 surged by VND7,000-12,000 per kilo to VND78,000-88,000 in the central region and Central Highlands

Meanwhile, it reached VND76,000-87,000 per kilo in the south, up VND1,000-4,000 per kilo compared to the previous day.

The price rose by VND2,000 per kilo to VND91,000 in Hanoi and VND1,000 to VND80,000 in HCM City, according to vietnambiz.vn.

At present, the price of pork in traditional markets in Hanoi is fluctuating between VND150,000-180,000 per kilo depending on the cut, an increase of about VND11,000 per kilo against last week.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, pork is traded in line with market mechanisms. The pork price changes depending on supply and demand, with a supply shortage leading to price increase. Therefore, to stabilise the pork price, the long-term solution is to increase pork supply to meet domestic demand.

To have enough pork supply, Vietnam needs a sustainable domestic industry and to increase pork imports, the ministry said.

The ministry has monitored the domestic pork market, including supply, demand and prices of pork products to propose solutions to stabilise the market.

It has also directed market surveillance forces to enhance control of the pork market to prevent the trading of products with unclear origin.

The ministry has also requested enterprises that have joined the market stabilisation programme to set up plans to stabilise the price.

Meanwhile, the MoIT asked Vietnamese trade offices abroad to seek market information and connect foreign partners to local pork import enterprises.

The ministry also worked with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) to diversify resources of imported pork.

The MARD said the high pork price was due to a lack of supply, the high cost of pig rearing due to using bio-safety measures and intermediaries who boost the price.

Nguyen Van Trong, Deputy Director of the MARD’s Department of Livestock Production, said controlling the intermediaries is very difficult as the market lacks production and trading chains.

The MARD has recommended husbandry businesses, especially large firms, build production chains. Those chains would help enterprises and State agencies easily control pork prices.

It has co-operated with relevant ministries and sectors to reduce intermediaries from production to consumption and increase pork imports to meet domestic demand.

The ministry has also suggested local consumers increase their consumption of other kinds of food, he said.

According to the General Statistics Office, in the first quarter of this year, live hog output reached 811,000 tonnes, down 19.3% year-on-year.

The output is expected to surge to 950,000 in the second quarter, one million tonnes in the third quarter and 1.1 million tonnes in the fourth quarter. Thus, by the third quarter, the domestic supply of pork would meet about 90% of pork demand.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in the first quarter, Vietnam imported nearly 25,300 tonnes of pork, up 205% year-on-year.