EU pork industry to face huge losses if tariffs are imposed

EU pork industry representatives and producers said they would bear huge losses if import tariffs on European pork are imposed. 

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Monday announced that it would launch an anti-dumping investigation into certain pork and pig by-products originating from the EU at the request of the Chinese domestic industry.

An industry insider surnamed Ma told the Global Times that the EU needs to adjust quickly to avoid an irreversible blow to the European pork farming industry. 

"If pig by-products are hard to export to China, European producers will hardly find a new market massive enough to accommodate those products, which will have a certain impact on EU pig prices, further affecting the European farming end. Once affected, it will be difficult to recover," said Ma.

Interporc, Spain's pork export association, said that it would fully cooperate with the investigation by Chinese authorities, noting that the EU and China have plenty of time to reach agreements. "The pork sector advocates for a trade understanding between the EU and China," Interporc said in a press release.

"We're mostly just in the phase of working out what questions will be asked and how we'll have to respond," said Anne Richard, director of Inaporc, France's pork exporter association, as quoted by Politico.

For Ksenija Simovic, senior policy adviser for trade at Copa-Cogeca, Europe's largest farmer lobby, "this is of course not acceptable for us. The European Commission (EC) should make sure that once again, our sector is not the one picking up the bill for disputes concerning other sectors.

"The EC said that temporary tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) will take effect on July 4. 

Ulrik Bremholm, chairman of the trade association Danske Slagterier, a unit of lobby group Danish Agriculture & Food Council, urged all parties to consider the implications for jobs, food security and production and to find a solution before July 4, according to a Reuters report published on Monday night.

"Starting from 2023, the EU's exports of certain pork and pig by-products to China have increased significantly, which makes it necessary to investigate their pricing factors in accordance with WTO rules," Cui Hongjian, a professor at the Academy of Regional and Global Governance with the Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times.

Chinese analysts stressed that the MOFCOM probe was launched at the request of the domestic industry in line with WTO rules, in stark contrast to the move of the EC, which was launched without an application from relevant industries in the EU, and the investigation process was unfair, non-objective and in potential violation of WTO rules. 

China's anti-dumping investigation of EU pork is open and transparent, and is being carried out in accordance with relevant domestic laws, with the purpose of safeguarding the legitimate interests of domestic industries, which is in line with WTO rules, Dong Yifan, a research fellow at the Institute of European Studies, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

In 2023, China imported roughly $3.5 billion worth of pork, and about half came from the EU. Spain exported $865.3 million worth of pork to China, accounting for about 25 percent of China's total pork imports in 2023, while Denmark exported $288.9 million worth of pork, accounting for 8.3 percent, according to the General Administration of Customs (GAC).

The Netherlands' pork exports totaled $267.3 million and France's reached $152.8 million.Industry insiders said that China imports pig by-products from the EU, including ears, noses, feet and other parts. These exports provide Europe with a massive market. Restricting or ending these orders would result in a significant loss of business for the European pork industry.

"If European exporters are affected, then more global exporters are waiting to seize their market share, such as Brazil, Canada, the US and Russia," Ma pointed out.China is expanding its import sources of pork.

On January 24, the GAC of China announced that imports of Russian pork, including edible pig by-products, that meet the relevant requirements are permitted.According to customs statistics, 18 countries exported pork products to China so far in 2024.However, analysts stressed that China-EU economic and trade relations should be mutually beneficial and win-win, calling on the EU to return to the stage of rational dialogue to solve problems.

"We hope that the EU side will think carefully, respect basic economic laws and WTO rules, heed the appeal of the EU industry, correct its wrong practices, and return to the right path of open cooperation and green development as soon as possible," Li Chao, a spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission, said on Tuesday during a press conference.