China’s quest to raise a better pig got a boost from the export of 866 live animals by Saskatoon based Fast Genetics in January.
The company shipped the animals by truck to the United States and then loaded the Landrace, Large White and Durocs on a plane in Chicago, Illinois. They flew to Chengdu, China, where they were met by 26 Chinese military trucks and shipped to Nanchong.
Shannon Meyers, general manager of Fast Genetics, said it is the company’s first overseas export of live animals.
“It is the largest for us and about the largest pig export into China ever,” he said.
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The pigs were sold to Tianzow Foods, which owns pork production facilities, slaughtering and processing plants and retail meat stores in China. With the sale, Tianzow now has the distribution rights for Fast Genetics in China, said Meyers.
Pork is a staple food in China, where population tops 1.3 billion and annual per capita pork consumption is 38 kilograms per person.
While the import will help China with its long-range goal to become more self-sufficient in pork production, Meyers doubted that would happen anytime soon.
“I’m not sure they ever will get there,” he said.
He cited China’s limited amount of arable land, its growing population and the increasing demand for pork. Most pigs in China are still raised on small farms.
Meyers expected exports of Canadian pork to remain strong to China and other international markets.
China looks to Canada as a leader in pig production technologies, said Meyers. Its reputation for high health and quality genetics will help the Chinese produce more consistent and safe food products, he said.
Fast Genetics is a subsidiary of Hytek Ltd., a pork production company based in LaBroquerie, Man. Hytek, which has an equity interest in Tianzow Foods, owns 66,000 sows in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the United States.
Fast Genetics is a pig genetics company delivering high health, hyper-maternal female lines and terminal sires selected for growth and carcass composition.
