Representatives of the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) are to meet with the management of Sofina Foods in Cookstown, Co. Tyrone on Thursday, June 4.
The purpose of the get-together is to discuss possible plans on the part of the pork processer to cut back on the number of pigs the business slaughters on a weekly basis.
Specifically, the UFU wants to find out about changes Sofina may wish to introduce regarding current contract agreements with its farmer supply base.
The union also wants to secure a commitment from the processer that it will prioritise the procurement of farm quality assured pigs produced in Northern Ireland into the future.
Commenting, UFU deputy president Clement Lynch said: “Many pig farmers have been put on the back foot and many still face significant uncertainty.
“At the beginning of the year, Sofina chief executive, Ash Amirahmadi, addressed stakeholders at Riddell Hall and outlined what appeared to be a positive vision and a range of plans for the pig sector.
“However, following those assurances, many farmers were informed that their pig contracts would not be renewed. That decision came as a major blow.”
Lynch highlighted that these changes are coming despite continuing demand for pigs.
“We recognise that the pig market remains challenging, but there continues to be strong demand for pigs and there is no significant backlog within the system.
“Farmers are therefore questioning why these decisions are being made and, more importantly, what this means for the long-term future of their businesses,” he said.
Pig returns
Meanwhile, pig returns in Northern Ireland have fallen by the equivalent of £30 per finished animal over the past 12 months.
This is according to Trevor Shields, owner of the Kilkeel-based Glenmarshal pedigree herd.
He explained: “Adding to the pressure on pig businesses has been the very significant increase in all costs that have impacted on farms since the beginning of the hostilities in the Persian Gulf.
“We use kerosene to heat all our houses. This cost alone has doubled over the past three months. Meanwhile feed costs continue to come under pressure.
“The impact of all this has seen a number of pig production businesses slipping into a negative margin situation.
“And there seems little possibility of the costs pressure that have impacted on pig businesses easing in the near future.”
Given these background circumstances, Shields points to the need for pig farmers to secure enhanced levels of animal performance and efficiency within their businesses.
“This can be achieved through the use of improved genetics. Traits such as feed conversion efficiency and daily growth are highly heritable,” he explained.
“At current pig prices, securing an improvement in feed conversion efficiency of just 0.1 will deliver enhanced margins in the region of £7.50 per pig.
“Improvements in pig genetics are being secured at an ever increasing rate. And this level of progress will improve yet again during the period ahead.
“So investing in top genetics makes absolute sense from the point of view of all pig farmers.”
The Kilkeel-based pig producer indicated that elite breeding boars can now achieve dally live weight gains of 1.5kg from 10 weeks-of-age onwards.
“This is a staggering level of performance given that their birth weights would have been in the range 1.5-1.7kg,” he said.