Good news for Belgian pig farmers! During the official state visit of Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hadja Lahbib to China this week, an agreement was reached between Belgium and China to resume exports of Belgian pork. In 2019, China had stopped importing Belgian pork following the outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF). Although Belgium regained its ASF-free status in 2020, pork exports to China had not yet resumed.
Since 2021, intensive negotiations with China have been conducted by federal Minister of Agriculture David Clarinval and his colleague, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hadja Lahbib, with the support of the FASFC and diplomatic circles. The FASFC also sent a permanent representative to China with the aim of concluding several export dossiers for Belgian agri-food products and reviving exports of Belgian pork to China. These efforts have paid off. As a result, exports of Belgian pork to China will soon be able to resume. The positive impact of this resumption on the Belgian economy cannot be overstated.
David Clarinval, Minister of Agriculture: "This is a great victory for our farmers. Enabling the export of Belgian pork to China was one of my priorities for this legislature. I have followed this dossier personally and closely, and have had frequent contact since early 2021 with the relevant Chinese authorities and the Chinese ambassador to our country. I am therefore very pleased with this agreement, which is a real breath of fresh air for our entire pig sector. We are free of African Swine Fever and have officially regained our disease-free status with the World Organisation for Animal Health since 1 October 2020, so this decision makes sense."
Hadja Lahbib, Minister of Foreign Affairs: "“This is very good news for our Belgian pig farmers. They are known well beyond our borders for their high-quality pork. Together with Minister David Clarinval, I have worked hard in recent years to lift the Chinese embargo. With results. This success not only benefits our pig farmers, but also translates into increased exports and an improved trade balance with China.”
Belgian pork, an important sector:
AGRICULTURE
Value of Belgian pig production (2023): €1.9 billion
Production volume (2022): 1,032,197 tonnes
Number of holdings (businesses) (2022): 5,750
Workforce volume: 4,700 FTE
PROCESSING
Value of pork and beef production (2022): €219.4 million
Value of charcuterie production (2022): €250.0 million
Total: €469.4 million
Workforce in pork and beef production (2020): 6,611 FTE
EXPORT
Exports of pork to China:
2015 6,499 tonnes carcass weight equivalent
2016 10,198
2017 5,994
2018 3.474
