Ulster Farmers Union says pork stockpile could depress prices

The Ulster Farmers Union is concerned about the effect on pigmeat prices if a European surplus storage scheme ends

A European stockpile of pork could depress the price paid to Northern Ireland farmers this summer, it has been claimed.

Europe started paying for the storage of pig meat in March after Russia banned EU food imports in response to sanctions over the conflict in Ukraine.

It was intended to take surplus stock out of the market and stabilise prices.

The Ulster Farmers' Union says the volume of meat in storage now equates to almost 800,000 pigs.

That is about half of Northern Ireland's annual production.

The UFU is worried about what will happen when the storage scheme ends and that meat comes back on the market in the summer.

The union says a reduction of around a fifth in the price paid for pork since last June is already forcing some farmers in Northern Ireland out of business.

Spokesman Jonny Cuddy said: "While there are many factors behind this fall in prices, the big problem is the imbalance in supply and demand as a result of the Russian trade embargo."

He said Russia accounted for around a third of EU pigmeat exports and that trade had been shut down by the sanctions.

Farmers are worried that the stocks of meat will be released during the summer, traditionally a time when prices rise due to demand for things like barbecues.

If that happens they claim it could depress prices at what should be the most profitable time of the year for them.