Pig farmers in Hai Duong win big

Continuously reaching new peaks

According to a reporter's survey, since the Lunar New Year, the price of live pigs in Hai Duong has continuously increased from 68,000 - 69,000 VND/kg to 72,000 - 73,000 VND/kg. Compared to the same period last year, the price of each kg of live pigs has increased by 19,000 VND/kg.

Pig prices have hit a high in recent years, making pig farmers in the province extremely happy.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Thao, owner of a farm in Mac Dong village, Lien Mac commune (Thanh Ha) has just sold 200 pigs. After deducting expenses, he pocketed 300 million VND in profit. "Before Tet, my family sold 70 pigs at 69,000 VND/kg, which made me feel excited. After Tet, the price of pigs continued to increase, so I was even happier. My family has about 200 more pigs that are about to be sold, so I hope the selling price will remain stable like this," said Mr. Thao.

Having raised pigs for many years, Mr. Nguyen Khac Chuc in Tran Xa village, Nam Hung commune (Nam Sach) has never been as happy as this year because the price of live pigs has increased sharply. He said that since around May 2024, the price of live pigs has always remained stable at over 60,000 VND/kg. Since the beginning of the year, the price of live pigs has continuously increased, causing him to invest heavily in raising pigs.

Mr. Chuc's family farm raises about 300 pigs of various types. Since the Lunar New Year, he has sold 30 pigs, earning a profit of 45 million VND. His farm currently has about 50 - 60 pigs ready to be sold. "The price of live pigs has increased, but the price of animal feed has remained stable since June last year, averaging 320,000 - 330,000 VND/bag, so farmers can rest assured in production," Mr. Chuc said.

A survey of several large-scale farms in Hai Duong City, Gia Loc District, Cam Giang District, etc. shows that pig farmers are sharing the joy because the price of live pigs is at a high level. Since before Tet At Ty, many pig farmers have pocketed from tens to hundreds of millions of dong in profits.

Mr. Nguyen Van Hiep in Tu Ky district is a trader who specializes in buying pork in the provinces of Hai Duong, Thai Binh, and Nam Dinh. He said that for the past 4 years, the price of live pigs has never been as high as it is now.

Analyzing the reasons for the recent sharp increase in pork prices, Mr. Hiep said that in 2024, many localities across the country will experience outbreaks of African swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease, and millions of pigs will have to be culled. The total pig herd has decreased while market demand is high, pushing up prices. During the recent Tet holiday, the demand for pork in the market was also very high, causing a shortage of goods.

"After Tet, I received many orders from the Central and Southern provinces, but the number of pigs purchased has not met all the demand," Mr. Hiep informed.

The representative of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine (Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hai Duong) also shared the same opinion as Mr. Hiep. It can be said that never before have pig farmers won as big as in the recent period.

Be careful

The increase in pig prices is a driving force for farmers in Hai Duong to continue investing in large-scale herd restoration in the coming time.

However, according to Mr. Le Van Tung, Head of the Department of Professional Affairs, Hai Duong Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, when repopulating and increasing production scale, farmers need to be careful and not rush. The most important thing is to research and regularly update market forecast information. Massive repopulation can lead to "supply exceeding demand", falling prices leading to no profit or even loss.

"Researching the market to repopulate and import livestock and poultry should always be a top priority, not only to restore production development but also to create sustainable development in livestock farming because the most important thing is to create output for products," Mr. Tung emphasized.

According to Mr. Tung, the weather is in the transitional period, with many complicated developments, the risk of disease outbreaks in livestock and poultry in general, and pigs in particular, is very high, especially dangerous infectious diseases. To facilitate herd restoration, farmers need to maintain clean barns, use lime powder or chemicals to spray disinfectants.

Breeders must import breeding stock from facilities that have been certified as disease-free and fully vaccinated. Breeding stock must be quarantined for at least 2 weeks to monitor their health. Absolutely do not import breeding stock of unknown origin or breeding stock from epidemic areas to avoid spreading the disease.

Provide a nutritious diet and drinking water for pigs. During cold days, farmers need to pay attention to keeping warm, especially at night, and add vitamins and digestive enzymes to food to improve the animals' resistance to healthy growth.

Fully vaccinate pigs against diseases. Regularly monitor and observe livestock. When abnormal symptoms such as high fever, loss of appetite, coughing, difficulty breathing are observed, etc., they must be quickly quarantined, checked, monitored, treated, and reported to veterinary staff for timely instructions on disease prevention and treatment.