Spanish pig farmers eye boost in exports to China

BARCELONA -- Pig farmers in Spain are hoping to expand pork exports to China as US President Donald Trump hiked tariffs on Chinese imports, prompting China to raise its own duties on US goods, an industry specialist said on Tuesday.

China is one of the world's largest pork consumers, with the United States having been a major supplier in recent years, Jaume Bernis, a representative of the Coordinator of Farmers and Ranchers Organizations (COAG), told Xinhua in an interview. COAG is one of Spain's oldest farmers' associations.

Pig farmers in Spain, who boast years of experience supplying China with pork products, are eager to fill the gap left by declining US sales to China amid ongoing trade tensions, he said. "This is an opportunity that could open the door for us to export more to China, because in Spain we already have the necessary experience and a longstanding relationship with Chinese partners."

Exports of Spanish pork products to China reached a record high of 3.11 billion euros ($3.54 billion) in 2020, with 75 percent of all Spanish pork exports outside the European Union that year going to China, according to data from Spain's Ministry of Agriculture.

However, in the following years, Spain's pork exports to China plunged due to rising production costs and increased competition from the United States and Brazil. Last year, pork exports to China were worth 1.06 billion euros, a trend COAG hopes to reverse, Bernis said.

"From past experience, the Chinese know our products well and recognize the seriousness and responsibility of our work - that's why they trust us," he said, noting that several Chinese delegations visited Spanish slaughterhouses when exports soared about five years ago.

Bernis highlighted the recent agreement signed during Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's trip to China, allowing the export of pig stomachs from Spain to China, as a positive development for the sector. "This agreement is a beginning. Beyond boosting specific exports, it could indirectly pave the way for broader increases in pork exports to China."

The agreement is expected to have a great impact in Spain's northern regions of Catalonia and Aragon, which account for 40 percent and 20 percent of the country's pork production, respectively.