AUTHORITIES have called for a revival of pork production, Xinhua reported Saturday, after a disease outbreak that decimated China’s pig herd.

At an agricultural conference in Beijing, officials said it was necessary to accelerate pig production by implementing favorable policies, the news agency reported.

Officials also called for the stabilization of grain output, according to Xinhua.

China — the world’s biggest producer and consumer of pork — has lost 40 percent of its pig herd since last year after deadly African swine fever swept through the country. Tightening supply has pushed up pork prices.

In September, China introduced a number of policies aimed at boosting hog production, such as subsidizing the construction of large pig farms and lowering the cost of land for farms.

An agriculture ministry official said last week China was also increasing its efforts to encourage small farmers to resume pig production.

Yang Zhenhai, director of the husbandry and veterinary bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, said in October that he forecast a return to usual pig numbers next year.

Recent policies to stabilize production and support the recovery of the pig herd have begun to show results, according to Yang.

China’s hog population has stopped shrinking and is starting to rise, and the recovery should keep pork prices in check, said Yang.

China’s pig herd increased by 2 percent in November compared with the prior month, the first increase in a year, according to the agriculture ministry.

Sow stocks were up 4 percent on October, the second consecutive month of a rise in the breeding herd inventory.

Yang said however that supplies will be tight ahead of the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday in late January.

Higher imports and the release of frozen pork from State reserves and commercial warehouses should boost supply however, while high prices will curb consumption.

Ample frozen pork inventories in China will help to contain pork prices, Yang said.

State reserves have been boosted with imports and commercial stocks, said Yang.

Pork imports have been stepped up in the fourth quarter, Yang said, adding that supplies would also increase because pigs sent to slaughterhouses had been raised to higher weights on good profits.

Sufficient inventories at cold-chain logistics businesses, slaughterhouses and wholesale warehouses, as well as higher poultry, mutton and beef output, will also help to contain pork prices, Yang said.

Gao Feng, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, told a news conference Thursday that 40,000 tons of pork will be released from reserves to brace for a spike in demand during the upcoming New Year and Spring Festival holidays.(SD-Agencies)