The international trade conflicts are affecting Upper Austria’s pig farmers. The base price for a kilogram of fattening pigs has fallen by 25 cents to 1.67 euros in four weeks. The average revenue loss per slaughtered pig (100 kilos) is 25 euros. “The pig farmers are currently paying the bill,” said Pig Exchange boss Johann Schlederer at a press conference on Thursday in Linz.
In response to EU tariffs on Chinese cars, Beijing imposed temporary import tariffs of 20 to 62 percent on European pork on September 10. This de facto brought production of goods sold to China to a standstill and led to an even greater excess supply in Europe than already existed in the fall. “Every form of pig farming is affected, the lower prices for fattening pigs also have an impact on piglet prices,” said Schlederer.
The EU’s annual export volume to China was most recently 1.2 million tonnes. There are currently around 5,000 frozen containers of pork on the way to China. Because tariffs have now been introduced, the price has to be reduced. Schlederer puts the resulting loss at a total of around 150 million euros.
The question is what will happen with tariffs at the beginning of 2026. Until then they are valid for the time being.
Good years and now a minus
In Upper Austria there are around 4,300 pig farmers with around 1.04 million animals (42 percent of the nationwide population). 25 years ago there were still 17,500 pig farms.
In the years 2022 to 2024 and partly this year there were mostly good prices, ranging between 1.85 and 2.45 euros per kilogram of fattening pig. For the entire year 2025, Schlederer expects a contribution margin of around 20 euros per pig, but many farmers are currently in the red due to the lower price and the costs for energy and operating resources.
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Image: LK OÖ
Source: Nachrichten
