CHINA imported 136,517 tons of pork in April, up 24 percent from the same month a year earlier, customs data showed, as the world’s top consumer of the meat stocked up on supplies amid concerns of a looming shortage.

This marked the biggest monthly volume since September 2016, when pork imports topped 140,000 tons. The imports have only come close to such a high level once since then when hitting 135,900 tons in March 2018.

The data from the General Administration of Customs only covers “muscle cuts,” or pork meat, and not feet, heads and other offal that China also imports in large volumes.

China has imported 470,776 tons of pork in the first four months of 2019, up 8.4 percent compared with last year, the data showed.

The surge in imports follows the spread of the African swine fever virus, reducing the national herd by up to 200 million animals, according to one estimate.

With domestic pork production expected to be down by at least 30 percent in 2019, importers began buying up supplies from abroad earlier this year.

Some food processors are also stepping up imports to guarantee their packaged and frozen products do not contain the African swine fever virus, as the government increases checks on processors and restaurants.

Big exporters say they are seeing a significant increase in Chinese demand for meat, not only cheaper items like offal.

“It’s not only offal like other years, also meat,” said Emmanuel Dartois, managing director of China for Cooperl, France’s top pork producer.

The company expects to sell about 50,000 tons of pork to China this year, Dartois said last week, up about 20 percent from 2018, as some Chinese plants struggle to source enough hogs.

Major British pork producer Cranswick said that comparable annual export volumes to its core eastern markets jumped 16 percent.(SD-Agencies)