Efficient reproduction of pigs and enhancing imports of frozen pork and live pigs have made prices of live hogs fall, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

Vietnam has imported 250 pigs from Thailand to breed and is encouraging businesses to import more to help restock herds across the country after the impacts of the African swine fever outbreak.

Vietnam will likely import 50,000 tonnes of pork from Russia this year, accounting for 70 per cent of total import.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has said pork must be eligible for price stabilisation due to the high demand for this essential good on the domestic market.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has asked rice traders to strictly maintain a reserve equivalent to at least five percent of their export volume in the six most recent months.

Vietnam imported nearly 66,000 tonnes of meat in the first two months of this year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Vietnam would import 100,000 tons of pork in the first quarter this year to stabilize the domestic market and lower pork prices, which have surged since the outbreak of African swine fever.

Vietnam is facing a shortage of pork for the Lunar New Year holiday, or Tet, so responsible ministries and departments plan to import 100,000 tons of pork for this largest and longest national holiday.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s leadership should evaluate and learn from its shortcomings and be held accountable for delays in reporting the potential shortage of pork and the pork price hike to the Government.

Prices of pork hit a record high with some supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City selling pork ribs at VND280,000 per kilogram and the price of pigs reaching VND90,000 per kilogram.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai has warned localities of illegal pig and pork imports from Cambodia and Thailand.

Can the prices of pork destabilize the monetary policy formulated by the central bank in Vietnam?

Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue on November 18 assigned the Ministry of Industry and Trade to calculate pork supply and demand every month from now until Tet holiday.

The African swine fever (ASF) has had a negative impact on small-scale farming households, but has brought benefits to large companies, according to VnDirect Securities.

While the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) considers importing pork to ease the domestic short supply, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) fears the imports will hurt the domestic livestock industry.

The amount of pork imported to Vietnam in the first four months of the year was six times higher than that in the entire year of 2018. The import price is VND5,000-7,000 per kilogram lower than the domestic price.