Meat imports breach 750,000 MT in 7 months

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s meat imports continue to grow this year as total volume at the end of July rose by almost eight percent on an annual basis to over 750,000 metric tons (MT), driven by higher pork and beef purchases abroad.

Latest Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) data showed meat imports from January to July reached 757,296.82 MT, about 7.84 percent higher than the 702,243.32 MT recorded volume in the same period last year.

Pork imports accounted for almost half of the total meat purchases during the seven-month period with volume reaching 372,941.232 MT. The volume was 7.54 percent over the 346,789.904 MT recorded pork imports a year ago, based on BAI data released yesterday.

The country continued to turn to foreign supplies to augment its domestic stocks of pork as the local hog industry continues to reel from the threats of African swine fever (ASF).

The US Department of Agriculture – Foreign Agricultural Service in Manila earlier projected the Philippines would be importing 480,000 MT of pork this year to boost its supply as domestic output would remain lackluster amid the ASF scare.

BAI data showed that beef imports exhibited the highest growth rate at 30 percent year-on-year as total purchases abroad reached 101,689.333 MT from last year’s 77,713.107 MT.

Industry stakeholders have earlier noted that local beef demand is steadily growing across all classes as people’s income increases.

The industry earlier noted that consumers have been looking for cheaper alternatives to pork, such as chicken and perhaps now beef.

Meanwhile, the country’s chicken meat imports grew by 2.4 percent on an annual basis to 255,375.877 MT from last year’s 249,370.722 MT.

Foreign purchases of chicken fats, chicken skin and mechanically deboned meat (MDM) lifted the overall imports of chicken meat during the reference period. Only these three chicken meat products posted increments during the seven-month period.

Imports of chicken MDM rose by 5.5 percent year-on-year to 145,846.949 MT from 138,209.455 MT, based on BAI data.

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) earlier projected that the country’s total meat imports this year would reach 1.09 million MT, slightly higher than last year’s estimated volume of 1.045 million MT.

The FAO attributed the increase in meat imports to the extension of reduced tariffs on pork as well as growing demand by Filipinos for more poultry and bovine meats.