Brussels, 09/10/2014 (Agence Europe) - In its forecasts on the development of the markets in 2014 and 2015, which were published on Wednesday 8 October, the European Commission takes the view that the production of beef and pork meat is set to increase.
As regards beef meat, it believes that Community production will bounce back by at least 110,000 tonnes, following three years of decline. This development is linked to the recapitalisation which has been seen in the dairy herd. “The drop in feed costs and the good quality of fodder could also lead to higher carcass weights. Over the first seven months of the year, slaughter numbers are 1.4% higher than last year”, the Commission explains. The situation varies between member states and depends largely on the level of recapitalisation in the dairy herd. In Germany and Ireland, slaughtering over the first seven months of the year was between 3% and 15% greater than in 2013 due to the higher volume of dairy reform and young dairy cattle. Conversely, Italy and Spain, where recapitalisation has been less marked, are lagging behind in reforms, which has led to a drop in production of between 4% and 5%. France is somewhere between the two. Abattoir activity fell by 1% over the same period. As regards the active dairy herd, the Commission predicts that the drop in numbers of cows is starting to level off.
As regards pork meat, the Commission has identified the first signs of an improvement in production. “After two years of reduced supplies of pork meat, a further drop of 0.5% is anticipated in 2014. However, there are now signs that production is starting to take off again. The drop in feed prices should allow the sector to face lower prices and achieve an increase of 0.8% in production in 2015”, the report states.
As regards the Russian ban, the Commission reports that Russia is the main destination for beef meat (29%) and pork meat (24%) from the European Union. “However, exports to Russia represent a low share of European production: 3% for pork meat and less than 1% for beef and poultry. Furthermore, the growing level of Russian production to improve its self-sufficiency already limited Community sales of beef and poultry to Russia.” (LC)