More can be done: Ukraine’s meat industry has potential, but ASF is a hindrance
28 March 14:56
Due to outbreaks of African swine fever (ASF) and unresolved issues with partner countries, Ukraine has not yet been able to unlock the full potential of the industry. This was discussed at a meeting with the participation of the heads of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, representatives of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, the State Agency of Forest Resources of Ukraine and specialized associations. This was reported by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, Komersant ukrainskyi informs.
Priority of opening new markets
The general opinion of those present at the meeting was that in order to expand exports of pork and meat products in general, it is necessary to continue working on opening new markets – South Korea, China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, India, the Philippines, Hong Kong and the EU. There is also a need to work on lifting the ban on Ukrainian pork exports to Moldova.
As Minister Vitaliy Koval emphasized, “Ukraine has great potential in the pig and meat industry, and our goal is to remove all barriers to exports, support Ukrainian producers and strengthen the industry’s position both domestically and internationally.”
For example, the company is actively working with partner countries to harmonize the terms of trade in pork.
Ihor Lotskin, Director of the Food Safety and Veterinary Medicine Department of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, said, among other things, that technical questionnaires related to import procedures and veterinary requirements are being exchanged.
Another important task is the recognition by the European Union of Ukraine’s zoning for African swine fever.
“This is a critical step that will allow us to resume exports of pig products to the EU, and therefore we are working to ensure that Ukraine meets European requirements in this area,” the Ministry emphasized.
The fight against ASF should be comprehensive
Minister of Agrarian Policy Vitaliy Koval acknowledged that the issue of African swine fever remains a serious challenge. Therefore, he said, it is necessary to develop solutions to regulate the number of wild pigs, which are a natural source of the disease. It is also important to strengthen control over the circulation of pork to prevent the spread of the infection through illegal trade.
Mykola Babenko, Executive Director of the Meat Industry Association, agreed that zoning alone is not enough. According to him, in 2024, Ukraine lost about 2 million pigs to ASF. He called for speeding up the registration of the ASF vaccine, which is already used in five countries, including Vietnam and the Philippines.
“The use of the ASF vaccine in Ukraine will not only allow us to “mitigate the stamping out” – to legally raise pigs and sell them at market price – but will also open up exports to countries that have used ASF vaccine prevention, including Vietnam and the Philippines,” said Mykola Babenko.
At the same time, Agro-Invest founder Ihor Lyakhovsky expressed the opinion that highly regulated markets, such as Japan and South Korea, will remain closed until the ASF is completely eliminated in Ukraine. Instead, the markets of Vietnam and the Philippines, which are more open, should be entered this year without delay.
The number one priority is to open the Vietnamese market
In the first eight months of 2024, Vietnam’s pork imports were ten times higher than exports. The country imported products worth a total of $144 million. In total, 27 countries have the right to supply their pork to Vietnam, but Ukraine is still not among them.
As demand in Vietnam’s domestic market continues to grow, the Meat Industry Association considers the opening of the local market a priority for the current year. The recent Ukrainian-Vietnamese meeting on trade relations between the two countries also served this purpose.
Vaccination of pigs was recognized as the key to exports. It was emphasized that the AVAC ASF Live vaccine, which has been successfully used in Vietnam and the Philippines, is highly effective in the fight against ASF, stopping the circulation of the virus. The Meat Industry Association believes that without effective vaccination, Ukrainian products will not be able to meet international biosafety standards, which will limit their access to key export markets.
