The first half of 2024 has seen the lowest level of UK pork exports in nine years, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).
AHDB senior livestock analyst, Freya Shuttleworth, said UK pork exports have witnessed some challenges this year, with tight domestic supplies resulting in higher product pricing compared with other players on the global market.
At 148,200t, UK pigmeat exports for the first half of the year are down 2.4% compared with 2023 and were the lowest since 2015.
In June, the UK exported just over 25,100t of pigmeat, an increase of nearly 4% compared with June last year.
The bulk of the volume was made up of offal at 12,300t, with fresh/frozen product accounting for 10,100t.
Although this is the second month to record year-on-year growth (with April also seeing volume gains of 4%), larger declines in January, March and May have resulted in year-to-date figures easing, Shuttleworth said.
The year-to-date volume decline is being driven by two product categories, fresh/frozen and bacon, losing 2,500t and 1,900t.
Offal volumes have been steady year-on-year, continuing to hold the largest market share (47%). Meanwhile, processed pigmeat and sausages have made small gains.
Imports
Similar to exports, UK pigmeat import volumes for June were up just over 4% year on year to 71,000t, with gains across all categories.
Fresh/frozen product continues to make up most of the import basket at 29,800t, however sausages overtook bacon volumes to stand at 16,100t and 14,800t, respectively.
“Again, looking at the year to date (January – June), movements have been mixed across months, with volume declines seen in March and May outweighed by volume growth in other months,” Shuttleworth said.
“Overall, imports in the first six months of the year have grown 1.4% compared with 2023 to 387,500t.
“However, this year-on-year growth is not universal across product categories. Processed pig meat and bacon have both lost import volume in H1 2024, down 3,100t and 1,800t, respectively.
“While fresh/frozen product holds the largest market share at 165,100t, it is the sausage category that has made the largest gain year on year, up 5,300t to 77,600t.”
Despite overall Great British pork volume sales declining year on year by 1%, there is a large difference between retail trends and foodservice.
The overall decline is driven by retail losses as it is a considerably larger market. However, with most major retailers continuing to uphold their British product commitments, there is generally less reliance on imports within this sector, Shuttleworth said.
