As Vietnam’s Lunar New Year (Tet) approaches, pork prices have risen sharply nationwide, with some of the country’s leading livestock companies adjusting prices upward despite reporting significant profits earlier in the year.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the country’s pig herd grew by 3.5% year-on-year as of November 2024, fueled by consistently high live pig prices. Meanwhile, the cost of feed has declined steadily since March 2023, reducing production costs for pork producers.

For large-scale pig farms, production costs average 51,500 VND per kilogram of live pig. With current selling prices of 64,200 VND per kilogram, farmers and companies earn about 1.27 million VND in profit per 100-kg pig.

Livestock companies have reported significant earnings in 2024:

BAF Vietnam Agriculture Joint Stock Company: Reported Q3 revenue of 1.31 trillion VND, up 7% year-on-year, with after-tax profits of 60 billion VND, a 54% increase. Cumulatively, BAF's nine-month profits reached 214 billion VND, over four times higher than the same period in 2023.

Dabaco Group: Recorded net revenue of 9.96 trillion VND by the end of September 2024, a 17% increase year-on-year. After-tax profits surged to 530 billion VND, 28 times higher than the same period in 2023.

CP Vietnam (a subsidiary of Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Foods): Its operations in Vietnam generated nearly 68 trillion VND in the first nine months of 2024, a 5% increase year-on-year. Livestock and poultry accounted for 59 trillion VND, an 8% rise.
Despite these strong earnings, major producers are raising prices significantly as Tet approaches.

CP Vietnam: Increased live pig prices to 67,000-68,000 VND/kg, up from 62,000-62,500 VND/kg earlier.

Dabaco: Adjusted prices to 65,000-66,000 VND/kg for pigs weighing 120-125 kg and 64,000 VND/kg for 110-kg pigs.

Other producers predict that live pig prices may reach 71,000 VND/kg during the Tet season’s peak demand period. Current prices nationwide range between 64,000 and 68,000 VND/kg, with the highest prices observed in northern provinces and parts of central Vietnam.

Nguyen Cong Bac, Director of Loc Phat Livestock Company in Son La, estimates that with current high prices, farmers and companies earn between 1.5 million and 1.9 million VND in profit per pig weighing 100-120 kg.

This profitability, combined with strong market demand during Tet, underscores the potential for further growth in Vietnam’s livestock industry, albeit with rising costs for consumers.

Tam An