Home
News
last update:May 12, 2008
Pork market influences Finnish food industry
Very high grain prices and a tough pork market are expected to hurt the
Finnish food industry for the rest of the year, news agency Reuters
reports.
Companies struggle to pass on price increases to consumers. First-quarter
profits at food companies, like Atria or HKScan have fallen more than 30%
compared with the same period in 2007. It is expected at least the second
quarter to be equally challenging.
Slaughtering
costs
Finland's pork slaughtering costs rose 11% in January after
rising by 7% year-on-year during the last quarter of 2008. Meanwhile, costs for
pig slaughter in the rest of Europe have dropped. "It's the gap between these
two which is an issue for both Atria and HKScan right now," an analyst
said.
Consumer prices
Consumer prices for pigmeat
increased around 8% in the first quarter compared with 2007, while that of ham
rose only roughly 5%. Prices for many agricultural products went up with growing
demand from emerging markets and increasing use of food crops to make
biofuels.
Related websites:
• Atria
• HKScan
• Reuters
Editor PigProgress
To comment, login here
Or register to be able to comment.