Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF), Thailand’s leading food producer, saw its stock surge almost 6 per cent on Tuesday as pork prices continued to rise due to pork shortages.
CPF rose 5.88 per cent from its prior closing to 27 baht for a fourth trading day in a row, the highest since September last year.
Retail pork prices in Thai markets have soared to over 200 baht per kilogramme, up from the normal level of 130-160 baht.
Although the surge in pork prices has boosted CPF’s business outlook, it also resulted in increased burden for food operators and consumers, particularly ahead of the Chinese New Year celebration on February 1.
Industry insiders said this was because of the outbreaks of African swine fever (ASF), a highly contagious hemorrhagic viral disease of domestic and wild pigs, and higher costs that cut pork supply and pushed the prices to record high in decades.
However, the Thai government has yet to fully recognized the ASF disease and there is no vaccine or cure to prevent the spread of the virus, according to local media Prachachat.
Niphat Neuanim of the Swine Raisers Association of Thailand said that many pig farmers have quit their business as a result of the ASF outbreaks and that they did not receive sufficient help from the authorities.
“Some lost their entire farm,” Niphat stressed.
Meanwhile, the Commerce Ministry is working on solutions to ease people’s distress caused by rising pork prices. The ministry’s Internal Trade Department will hold a meeting this Friday.
Aside from CPF, other food operators such as Thaifoods Group (TFG) and GFPT are also on the rise thanks to trends on rising pork prices. As of 12.20 am, TFG rose 2.88 per cent, while GFPT rose 5.47 per cent.