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Farmers have been fattening hogs since late last year to almost double their normal weight roughly the size of a pygmy hippo or a female polar bear in the hope the animals will generate higher returns should prices rebound.
Cao Tao, a pig trader in the northwestern province of Shaanxi, said many of the swine he’s buying weigh more than 200 kilograms, compared with their usual size of around 125 kilograms. “Some farmers are holding onto their larger pigs on hopes of a price rebound,” he said.
Instead, Chinese wholesale pork prices have plunged more than 40% since mid-January amid sluggish demand, increased imports and panic selling by farmers after fresh outbreaks of African swine fever. Muyuan Foods Co., the country’s biggest pig breeder, said this week it’s expecting a continued drop in domestic hog prices, with the slump not bottoming out until next year or even 2023.