Egg Prices Soar, Laying Hens Turn Profitable... Pork Prices Up 640%

Livestock Profitability Recovers Except for Broilers and Dairy Cows

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Last year, the profitability of livestock such as fattening pigs (pork) and laying hens significantly increased. This was largely due to lower production costs and higher selling prices. Pigs showed a recovery in profitability following the decline caused by African Swine Fever (ASF) in 2019, while laying hens saw improved profitability as egg prices rose.

According to the "2020 Livestock Product Production Cost Survey" released by Statistics Korea on the 24th, the net profit per laying hen turned positive at 2,590 KRW last year, recovering from a deficit of 1,823 KRW the previous year. Laying hens are livestock raised for egg production. When egg prices rise, profitability naturally improves. Last year, the wholesale price of eggs was 1,105 KRW for 10 premium eggs, up 13.4% from 947 KRW in 2019. During the same period, the laying rate of hens was 81.1%, up 1.7 percentage points from 79.4% the previous year, which helped reduce production costs by 6 KRW (0.7%).

Profitability of fattening pigs also increased significantly. The net profit per fattening pig last year was 47,000 KRW, an increase of 41,000 KRW (640.6%) compared to the previous year. The market price for a 110kg pig was 353,000 KRW, up 9% from 324,000 KRW the previous year. Conversely, the production cost for a 100kg live fattening pig decreased by 7,000 KRW (2.6%) to 315,000 KRW compared to the previous year.

The profitability of Hanwoo (Korean native cattle) farms also improved. The net profit per Hanwoo fattening cattle (beef) was 58,000 KRW, turning positive from a loss of 76,000 KRW the previous year. It had recorded net losses for two consecutive years from 2018 to 2019 but returned to profit last year. The price of castrated cattle rose 11%, from 19,136 KRW in 2019 to 21,241 KRW last year. The production cost per 100kg of Hanwoo fattening cattle increased by 63,000 KRW (5.5%) to about 1,195,000 KRW due to rising livestock and feed costs.

The net loss per beef cattle was 574,000 KRW, which was less than the 602,000 KRW loss in 2019. The production cost per 100kg of beef cattle rose by 24,000 KRW (3.4%) to about 728,000 KRW due to increases in livestock and feed costs. The net profit per Hanwoo breeding cow increased by 215,000 KRW to 518,000 KRW compared to the previous year, driven by higher calf prices. The price of calves (female, 6-7 months old) rose 6.9% to 3,435,000 KRW last year from 3,212,000 KRW the previous year.

The net profit of dairy cows was 2,661,000 KRW, a decrease of 40,000 KRW from the previous year. This was because the cost of raising them was 1.3 percentage points higher than total income.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.