On April 3, in Hanoi, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment held a conference on disease prevention and pig farming development in the new situation. The conference attracted the participation of representatives from many localities, industry associations, and livestock and veterinary enterprises to find solutions to develop the pig farming industry in the face of new opportunities and challenges.
Livestock industry responds promptly to market changes
Current situation and major challenges
Mr. Tran Lam Sinh, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Dong Nai, said that the livestock industry accounts for the highest proportion of the province's agricultural production value, at 61.83%. However, Dong Nai's total pig herd is currently only about 1.9 million, down 5.23% compared to the same period last year. The pig farming industry is facing many difficulties, including disease prevention, herd declaration, entry and exit control, and relocation of farms out of residential areas.
Over the past year, Dong Nai had to destroy 1,300 pigs due to disease, causing significant losses to farmers. Although the province has relocated 80% of livestock farms out of residential areas, the remaining 20% still face difficulties due to lack of land and issues related to support policies. Faced with this situation, Mr. Sinh made 3 recommendations to improve the efficiency of management and development of the livestock industry.
First, it is necessary to implement traceability - a key factor to ensure food safety. According to Mr. Sinh, if a closed chain is not built and operated, traceability cannot be effectively implemented. In the immediate future, it is necessary to regulate and deploy identification codes for livestock farms for tighter management.
Second, it is necessary to specifically regulate the declaration of the total herd in legal documents, and at the same time supplement the form of online declaration. This is not only an incentive measure but also a mandatory regulation to improve the effectiveness of disease management and surveillance.
Third, it is necessary to build a standardized, unified management software nationwide, with a "conductor" responsible for collecting data and information. This system will help manage the livestock industry more effectively, especially in the context of increasingly complex epidemics and market fluctuations.
Also at the conference, Mr. Nguyen Dinh Dang, Director of the Hanoi Department of Animal Husbandry, Veterinary and Fisheries, shared the difficulties of the livestock industry in the locality. Hanoi is expanding the urban development planning space, leading to the land area for agriculture and livestock increasingly shrinking. However, the livestock industry still plays an important role in ensuring food security for more than 10 million people and contributing to the growth of the agricultural sector.
Mr. Dang said that some regulations in Decree 02/2017/ND-CP on mechanisms and policies to support agricultural production to restore production in areas damaged by natural disasters and epidemics are no longer suitable, causing difficulties in implementation. In particular, the commune-level veterinary system - the force that closely follows the locality and grasps the disease developments the fastest - is facing many challenges due to the process of restructuring the apparatus in localities. Therefore, Mr. Dang proposed that it is necessary to study more specific policies to support this force, ensuring effectiveness in disease prevention and control.
Meanwhile, Mr. Dang Van Hiep, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Thanh Hoa, informed that the total pig herd in the province currently reaches 1.3 million, with 588 farms and more than 88,070 households. Thanh Hoa's annual fresh meat output is estimated at about 185,000 tons. Each month, the province sells 155,000-160,000 pigs, of which 110,000-115,000 are consumed within the province, the rest are sold to other localities.
It is estimated that in the first quarter of 2025, Thanh Hoa's pig farming industry sold about 480,000 pigs, bringing in a value of about 3,600 billion VND, with an estimated profit of 720 billion VND. In 2025, the total value of pig farming production in the province is expected to reach 12,000 billion VND. For sustainable development, Mr. Hiep recommended applying advanced technology, digital transformation and building a database in livestock farming, in order to automate production stages, optimize productivity and reduce costs.
In addition, in the context that the whole country is about to implement a two-tier government model from July 1, 2025, Thanh Hoa proposed that the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment pay attention to and guide the province in the management of the livestock and veterinary sectors, ensuring consistency and efficiency.
Meat output forecast to decrease
Reporting at the conference, Mr. Pham Kim Dang, Deputy Director of the Department of Livestock and Veterinary, said that in 2024, Vietnam's total meat output will reach 8.1 million tons, an increase of 3.5% over the previous year, of which pork accounts for about 62% (5.18 million tons). Vietnam currently ranks 4th in the top 10 largest pork consuming countries in the world. However, it is forecasted that in 2025, global pork output will decrease slightly to 115.1 million tons, down 0.8% compared to 2024, due to the impact of large markets such as China and the European Union.
Vietnam's pig farming industry has many advantages, such as increasingly perfect institutions, potential consumer markets, reduced and stable feed prices, and opportunities to access new technology. However, there are still many challenges, including small-scale slaughtering habits, difficulty in controlling biosafety, dependence on input materials, and limited chain linkages. In particular, in the first quarter of 2025, pork prices increased early and rapidly, leading to a shortage in the South, with a large number of pigs from the North being transported to the South.
Mr. Dang proposed immediate solutions, such as strengthening disease prevention, thoroughly applying biosafety, controlling borders to prevent smuggling, expanding markets and promoting exports. In the long term, it is necessary to re-plan the livestock industry, focus resources on key areas, invest in science and technology, digital transformation, and build a closed chain from breeding to distribution.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Phung Duc Tien emphasized that the agricultural sector has “reached the finish line spectacularly” in 2024 and the first quarter of 2025 recorded many important milestones. The target for 2025 is to achieve 4% growth, with an export turnover of 64-65 billion USD, striving to reach 70 billion USD. However, to overcome the challenges, the livestock industry needs to “respond to all changes with the constant”, deploy comprehensive solutions, and strictly control major issues such as breeds, feed, environment, and disease safety.
The recommendations from Dong Nai, Hanoi, and Thanh Hoa at the conference showed the determination of localities in developing the pig farming industry in a sustainable, modern, and effective direction. Applying technology, digital transformation, and building a closed-loop supply chain will be the key for the livestock industry to overcome difficulties, seize opportunities, and achieve growth targets in 2025. With the support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, the Vietnamese pig farming industry promises to continue to make important contributions to the country's socio-economic development.
(Source: Government Newspaper - Do Huong)
