BUSINESS / INDUSTRIES
Trade row prompts China to use low-protein diet for pigs to reduce soybean intake
Chinese pork farmers aiming to abandon US soybeans
By Published: Aug 06, 2018 10:23 PM
China is trying to reduce imports of soybeans through promotion of soybean substitutes amid escalating trade tensions with the US, and Chinese pork farmers have started on this effort in a bid to minimize the negative impact and support their country.
According to a report from domestic news site Economic Daily on Monday, China is promoting the application of low-protein diet technology in the breeding of pigs and broilers to reduce domestic soybean demand. After adding some certain amino acid, this change will not affect the animals' meat production performance.
The move could reduce demand for soybean meal by up to 7 percent, equal to 5 million tons of soybean imports, the report noted.
"We have already been working on changing the pork feed formula, given the current unstable trade situation. It might take some time but is totally achievable," Xu Caiyu, a pork farmer in Central China's Henan Province, told the Global Times on Monday.
Xu noted that the formula change could not only help farmers minimize the negative effect of the trade row, but would also be "a way of showing our support for (China) when facing rising challenges from the US."
"Previously, we used the remains of soybeans after the oil is extracted to supplement pork feed because of the low cost, but there are plenty of replacements for soybeans, for example, peanuts and rapeseed," Xu said.
He added that even if China doesn't import any soybeans from the US, Chinese pork farmers like him won't be hurt.
However, US soybean farmers might not have it as easy as their counterparts in China in this round, Li Guoxiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Rural Development Institute, told the Global Times on Monday.
"The US soybean price has slumped a lot, meaning heavy losses for local farmers," Li said.
US soybeans edged lower on Monday. The most active soybean futures contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade was down 0.2 percent at $9.00-1/4 per bushel as of press time, Reuters reported.
"Meantime, China is also increasing imports from Southeast Asia to expand its import sources. But the US can hardly find a big consumer like China," Li said.
China imports 60 percent of the soybeans production in the world, bought 32.9 million tons from the US in 2017, accounting for 34 percent of the total purchases, according to a Reuters report.
US' net farm income, a broad measure of profits, is forecast to decrease 6.7 percent to $59.5 billion in 2018, which would be the lowest level in nominal terms since 2006, according to a report from the US Department of Agriculture.
"In face of a soybean glut, US farmers could plant other crops, but they have to first suffer from the big losses in this round," Li said.
According to a report from domestic news site Economic Daily on Monday, China is promoting the application of low-protein diet technology in the breeding of pigs and broilers to reduce domestic soybean demand. After adding some certain amino acid, this change will not affect the animals' meat production performance.
The move could reduce demand for soybean meal by up to 7 percent, equal to 5 million tons of soybean imports, the report noted.
"We have already been working on changing the pork feed formula, given the current unstable trade situation. It might take some time but is totally achievable," Xu Caiyu, a pork farmer in Central China's Henan Province, told the Global Times on Monday.
Xu noted that the formula change could not only help farmers minimize the negative effect of the trade row, but would also be "a way of showing our support for (China) when facing rising challenges from the US."
"Previously, we used the remains of soybeans after the oil is extracted to supplement pork feed because of the low cost, but there are plenty of replacements for soybeans, for example, peanuts and rapeseed," Xu said.
He added that even if China doesn't import any soybeans from the US, Chinese pork farmers like him won't be hurt.
However, US soybean farmers might not have it as easy as their counterparts in China in this round, Li Guoxiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Rural Development Institute, told the Global Times on Monday.
"The US soybean price has slumped a lot, meaning heavy losses for local farmers," Li said.
US soybeans edged lower on Monday. The most active soybean futures contract on the Chicago Board Of Trade was down 0.2 percent at $9.00-1/4 per bushel as of press time, Reuters reported.
"Meantime, China is also increasing imports from Southeast Asia to expand its import sources. But the US can hardly find a big consumer like China," Li said.
China imports 60 percent of the soybeans production in the world, bought 32.9 million tons from the US in 2017, accounting for 34 percent of the total purchases, according to a Reuters report.
US' net farm income, a broad measure of profits, is forecast to decrease 6.7 percent to $59.5 billion in 2018, which would be the lowest level in nominal terms since 2006, according to a report from the US Department of Agriculture.
"In face of a soybean glut, US farmers could plant other crops, but they have to first suffer from the big losses in this round," Li said.
