Prices of suckling pigs double due to supply shortage in China

Channel NewsAsia 23 Jan 08;

SINGAPORE: The prices of suckling pigs have doubled recently due to a drop in supply from China, and a 5kg pig is going for as much as S$180.

Restaurant operators said that more people in China can now afford suckling pigs. With higher local consumption, fewer are exported.

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) has also stopped some of the five licensed pork suppliers from selling to Singapore after finding a banned antibiotic, known as Nitrofuran, in their pigs.

Between January and November last year, 108,300 suckling pigs were imported, down from 220,000 in 2006.

As prices were already fixed in December last year, restaurants have to absorb some of the price hike and expect lower profits this year. - CNA/ac