Canada is the single most vulnerable pigmeat country in the world because it is so
heavily dependent on exports, particularly to the U.S., says Andrew Cookson, the
managing director of Europe-based GIRA Consultancy & Research who recently spoke
at the annual general meeting of Alberta Pork.
Rather than continuing to rely on one segment of a volatile world market, Cookson
recommends that the Canadian pork industry recognize opportunities to enter growing
markets, enhance farmer/processor relationships, become more cost competitive and
export more pig meat than live pigs. As progress is being made in those areas, Cookson
recommends the industry focus on differentiating Canada’s pork product. Cookson recommends a three-step process for managing risk in today’s market. The first
step is to ensure lowest-cost competitiveness. “You have no choice but to maximize all
measures to improve farm productivity and efficiency,” he says.
The second step is to optimize the current situation. On the production front, this means
finishing and slaughtering more pigs in Canada, says Cookson. On the marketing front, it
means diversifying the Canadian pork industry’s customer base. Finally, the third step is to differentiate Canadian pork, especially against its U.S.
counterpart. Right now there is very little to differentiate Canadian pork from U.S. pork,
says Cookson. This is not helped by the fact that Canadian pork is priced based on the
U.S. market so consumers tend to buy on price rather than product identity.