Total hog slaughter volume in China fell for the second consecutive month even though margins for raising hogs more than doubled month on month, data from China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) showed.
Hog slaughter volume from major producers in the country slid nearly 5% from the previous month to 24.13 million heads in June.
Hog producers are holding onto their inventory despite the fact that margins for hog sales had doubled in June. Margins for large-size producers jumped to 187 yuan/head ($28/ton) in June, up one-fold from the previous month.
Margins for small producers also flipped into positive territory, averaging 27 yuan/head ($4/ton) last month.
As a result of lower slaughter volume, the total hog herd rose to 430 million heads by the end of June, up about 2% from the previous quarter.