Feed Strategy - May 2018 - 6
6 ❙ FeedStrategy Growing pork demand, efficiency gains fuel pig production A growing number of middleclass consumers demand more meat in key markets worldwide. ANN REUS G rowing demand for pig meat and increasingly efficient swine production systems will allow for growth in worldwide pig - and pig feed - production in the coming years. The 2018 Swine Outlook report from The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations looks at the demand for pork in growth markets, its impact on feed production and explore the future of the world's No. 1 protein. Pork industry drivers The FAO says that, in developing countries - where most of the world's population increases take place - meat consumption has increased 5 to 6 percent per year over the past few decades. "When an economy is growing and incomes are growing, people tend to eat more meat," says Steve Meyer, an economist with Kerns and Associates. "Generally, if you find the parts of the world where you see increases in the standard of living, you're going to see more meat consumption - and pork is going to be along for the ride." According to the FAO, world pig meat consumption in 2015 was 15.3 kg per capita; it is expected to fall slightly by 2030 to 15.1 kg per capita. In the United States, for example, pork consumption has increased by 8.17 percent since 2010, reports Patrick Fleming, director of market intelligence for the National Pork Board, a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) marketing group. "We're going to produce more [pork], we're going to have more opportunity to sell more and, right now, customers are willing to buy more," Fleming says, noting demand of the growing global middle class. "Pork has a key role to play in the consumer mind and therefore, we have this relevance across the day, which is unique to pork in a lot of ways - breakfast, lunch and dinner all have pork components." As pork consumption grows, so does pig feed production. www.WATTAgNet.com ❙ May 2018