Listing leg pork at VND100,000 per kilogram, Thanh, a vendor at Pham Van Bach Market in HCMC, routinely discounts it to VND95,000 per kg. Thanh said that although wholesale pork prices dropped over a month ago, retail sales remain slow. She frequently works past noon or lowers prices in the morning to clear stock.

Despite entering the Mid-Autumn Festival season, when pork demand typically rises, retail stalls have failed to attract buyers. Several small businesses that previously produced Mid-Autumn cakes have closed due to food safety concerns and business registration regulations, suppressing overall market demand.

“This has kept demand from improving,” Thanh said.

Khai Anh, a consumer in Tan Son Nhat Ward, HCMC, said prices in August are at least 10-15 percent lower than in May, June and early July. For pork, she previously paid VND180,000 for a kilogram of baby back ribs, but the price has now fallen by VND20,000 to VND160,000. Supermarket prices remain above VND200,000 per kilogram but have also declined slightly, by 5-10 percent, from previous levels.

“As a consumer, I feel less pressure when meat, fish and vegetables are cheaper each time I go to the market. But that doesn’t mean I buy more just because prices are lower. My family’s daily food consumption remains the same,” Khai Anh said.

A survey at traditional markets in HCMC shows that pork prices have fallen significantly from previous months. Pork leg currently sells for VND95,000-100,000 per kilogram, while pork belly is priced at VND120,000-140,000, down from around VND150,000 at the beginning of the year. At some outlets advertising pork from their own farms, also known as “soldier pork,” pork leg sells for just VND70,000-80,000 per kilogram.

Supermarkets are also offering discounts of 5-15 percent on pork, depending on suppliers and product types.

Data from Hoc Mon wholesale market shows that since the beginning of August, carcass pork prices have remained relatively stable at VND70,000-73,000 per kilogram for Grade 1 and around VND63,000 for Grade 2. Compared with early July, prices have fallen by VND5,000-7,000 per kilogram, while the volume of pigs arriving at the market in August has increased from the previous month.

A representative of Hoc Mon wholesale market said the market received 395 tons of pigs on August 20, up 32 tons from August 13.

Prices were generally stable compared with the previous week, with Grade 1 carcass pork at VND70,000 per kilogram and Grade 2 at VND63,000. Baby back ribs averaged VND140,000 per kilogram, lean shoulder VND110,000 and pork chops VND68,000. Demand is currently stable, with the market expecting it to increase in September when school cafeterias resume operations.

Nguyen Kim Doan, vice chair of the Dong Nai Livestock Association, said pork prices have fallen from previous months because domestic supply remains stable while pork imports have increased. Meanwhile, prices of alternatives such as fish, shrimp and poultry remain low and stable, giving consumers more choices and increasing competition in the market.

He also said lower logistics costs had helped reduce product prices, both at traditional markets and in supermarkets and retail chains. In addition, school meal services have yet to resume, keeping pork demand in a seasonal low.

Doan expects pork demand to recover in September and the final months of the year, but said prices remain difficult to predict because they depend on factors beyond domestic supply and demand.

For now, he said live hog prices in southern Vietnam have shown signs of a slight recovery after approaching production costs for several days. On August 20, live hog prices in Tay Ninh and Dong Thap rose by VND1,000 per kilogram to VND57,000 and VND56,000, respectively. Prices in HCMC and Dong Nai stood at VND57,000, while other southern localities were around VND56,000.

In the north, prices also rose by VND1,000 per kilogram in Tuyen Quang, Cao Bang and Thai Nguyen to VND58,000. Other localities, including Hanoi, Bac Ninh and Hung Yen, were around VND57,000.

Statistics show that Vietnam spent $2 billion importing nearly 1 million tons of meat and edible animal by-products in 2025. The average import price of pork products was only around VND59,000 per kilogram.

India remained Vietnam’s largest supplier of meat and meat products, accounting for 19.29 percent of total import volume.

Tam An