Magazine: The new pig strategy seems to work

The implementation of the new pig strategy, approved last summer, has already started. Government promise is that HUF 1.6 billion is earmarked for the programme this year. Goals include increasing both the pig stock and pork consumption. Back in the 1980s Hungarians ate 60 kilograms of pork a year, but today they only consume 27 kilograms. Parallel to this the size of the stock reduced from more than 10 million pigs to less than 3 million since then. Hungary’s government aims at doubling the number of pigs in 6-7 years. The programme approved last year specified the tasks of the Ministry of Agriculture for achieving this goal and they already started working on them. One of the most serious obstacles is the black market. The step to reduce the VAT on live and half pig from 27 percent to 5 percent as of 1 January 2014 seems to have started positive processes, but the first measured results will only be available in a couple of months time. In 2012 National Food Chain Safety Authority (NÉBIH) surveyed the pig sector’s capacities and found that abattoirs’ nominal capacity is 7.8 million pigs, which is OK even if the number of the current pig stock doubles. There is a problem, though: the majority of existing production capacity is obsolete, new abattoirs and modern processing plants are needed. In 2013 the processing sector was supported with HUF 400 million. Supporting research and development is given special attention, especially increasing the proportion of domestically produced protein in pig feed and improving meat quality. Popularising Mangalica products is another goal and the ministry gave HUF 110 million to the National Association of Mangalica Breeders for establishing a certificate of origin and quality assurance programme. Breeders were also supported with HUF 98 million for improving the genetic stock of Hungarian pigs and bettering the registry system. A system for issuing certificates of origin and ensuring quality assurance constitutes an important tool in acquiring new markets. The new system is being worked out at the moment, with conciliation talks between various stakeholders going on. A decision was also made concerning the High Quality Pork quality assurance system, its auditing and logo, and a contract was signed with the Livestock and Meat Interprofessional Organisation and Marketing Board (VHT) to introduce and operate the system. Other very important initiatives include setting up the Pig Stock Information System (TIR) and the Standardised Registry and Identification System (ENAR) – both could help in winning the battle against the black market. A major domestic and international marketing campaign will be launched to improve sales of quality Hungarian pork and Mangalica products. The programme includes the creation of various media platforms and organising products presentations and meetings for businessmen in Hungary and abroad. A production and market information system is also being developed for the pig sector; the Research Institute of Agricultural Economics (AKI) now operates a thematic website that coordinates already existing databases and systematises their data, focusing on the number of pigs, quantity data and market processes.