For about 5% of the total number of 6,000 pork producers in the region in the West of France, shutting shop may already happen before the end of this year. These alarming signals were sent out by the regional department of the French agricultural organisation FRSEA (Fédération régionale des syndicats d'exploitants agricoles).
Brittany is the largest pig producing area of France. In 2009, 8.35 million out of a total of 14.8 million pigs were produced here. According to the FRSEA, the pig sector is in the heaviest crisis in three years, leading to the gloomy perspectives.
End of resistance
Chairman François Valy, of the Brittany FRSEA pig production sector, was quoted to say: "Pork producers have gone very low with their prices but now the end of resistance has been reached. The current price for pigs just allows paying for feed but there is no money left for other costs and labour. A lot of producers have already been putting a lot of strain on their financial backups for quite some time."
