Profitability, discipline, and new technologies. Outcomes of the meeting with Lukashenko on pig farming development
The prospects for the development of the pig breeding industry were discussed at a meeting chaired by President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, BELTA correspondent reports.
During the meeting, the focus was on analyzing the situation in each region. Governors reported in detail to the head of state on the state of affairs in the pig breeding industry of their regions. It was substantively discussed what should be done with pig breeding complexes that operate unprofitably, based on outdated technologies. Whether it is advisable to demolish them and build new ones or to reconstruct them. The answer to these questions will be sought by all interested parties in the preparation of a special program, which the head of state has instructed to develop.
The main message from the President is to move towards the creation of high-tech complexes, both in the modernization of existing ones and in the construction of new ones. A detailed analysis will be carried out by region to determine where, how many, and what kind of complexes need to be built or reconstructed, and what will be the assistance and participation from the state. This is analogous to what was done in the country with dairy complexes.
Alexander Lukashenko instructed to pay special attention to the profitability of both newly constructed facilities and existing ones. If, for example, some individual complexes are chronically unprofitable, then there is no need to artificially support them and pull them through at any cost.
Adherence to technological and labor discipline, and order at pig breeding complexes is a matter of state importance. This was emphasized by the President at the beginning of the meeting, and he reiterated his demand to strictly ensure both during the discussion of the topic with the participants. This issue is of particular importance in the context of the biological protection of complexes, including from African swine fever, which at one time negatively affected the country's pig breeding industry.
The issue of importing pork into Belarus was also raised. It was emphasized that the country produces enough pork to meet its own needs, and there is no deficit. Imports of this product are mainly for the needs of the meat processing industry and from countries where this product is more competitive than domestic production in terms of price.
Following the meeting, Chairman of the Minsk Regional Executive Committee Alexander Turchin told reporters that the industry as a whole is transforming and moving forward, with technological indicators improving: "We already understand today that with a significantly smaller number of pigs, due to normal weight gains, we can obtain the volume of pork necessary in our country to, firstly, satisfy people's needs, and secondly, to supply the processing industry with pork."
The governor named the decision to develop a program for the development of pig breeding for the next few years as one of the main results of the meeting. Its goal is to modernize pig complexes to obtain the required volume of pork production. "The construction of modern pig complexes is not only about technology, but also about protection against certain diseases accumulated in old pig complexes," he emphasized.
Speaking about the situation in the Minsk region, Alexander Turchin noted that the President's directive to reach the 2012 pork production level has been fulfilled and even exceeded in the region. Modern pig complexes allow not only to ensure the overall output but also to achieve higher economic efficiency indicators. "Thanks to the head of state, he heard and supported this. This is the technical re-equipment of the industry, the construction of new pig complexes. Because we (in the region. - BELTA's note) have seven pig complexes that are already over 30 years old. For a number of reasons, we cannot achieve the results on them that we should have to be competitive with our neighboring countries," said the head of the Minsk region.
He also considers it important to calculate the necessary production volumes for full demand to ensure self-sufficiency. "I am a firm believer that when we talk about food security, we must clearly understand that we should rely on our own strength. Imports are all well and good, but sometimes there are situations where imports can stop overnight, and we can face a number of serious problems," said Alexander Turchin.
In turn, the Chairman of the Grodno Regional Executive Committee, Vladimir Karanik, said that the region produces more than a quarter of all pork in the country. Various pig complexes are in operation, but he considers complexes for 24,000 heads to be the most optimal. "To ensure safety, reduce risks and environmental impact, 24,000 heads is seen as optimal. The design of new complexes and reconstruction are being carried out with this figure in mind," he said.
"We must prioritize economic efficiency. Unfortunately, at the moment, not all of our complexes are operating with a positive financial result. Yes, overall, a positive result is achieved in the region, and it is the highest in the country. But we look at the details. We must either re-profile or reconstruct those complexes that cannot ensure economically efficient operation at the moment. Or build a new complex in the same district, in the same farm, in order to move people to more comfortable and economically efficient working conditions," Vladimir Karanik explained the essence of the approach to the problem.
He noted that the President at the meeting specifically emphasized the need to achieve economic efficiency, rather than volume, as in Soviet times.
"If we consider Belarus's needs, our agro-industrial complex fully satisfies them. As for people's needs, the country's enterprises satisfy the demand for pork. But it must be understood that meat is also a product for our processing enterprises, which have good export potential. Therefore, part of the pork goes for processing to produce products that are supplied for export," the governor said. - And here many producers prioritize economic efficiency. If Russian pork is cheaper, they buy it to reduce the cost of their export supplies. Therefore, the question of a pork deficit in the country and that the population will not have enough of this meat has long been irrelevant. Only a quarter of the pork produced in the Grodno region goes to the shelves. The rest goes for processing."
Source: belta.by