China
has become the largest producer of livestock products as well as animal feed
worldwide. The output in 2016 surpassed previous expectations, while GMO
products are still growing slowly in the country.
Source: Shutterstock
According
to market intelligence firm CCM, China’s feed output has increased by 4.5% in
the year 2016, which has surpassed previous expectations and shows the trend of
China’s booming food and feed industry.
While
mixed feeds and additives premixes witnessed a year on year growth, the output
of concentrated feed was shrinking in 2016, due to the preference of China’s
manufacturers towards the first types.
China’s
feed industry is witnessing a boost in safety regulation, bigger industry
integration and more innovation nowadays. The industry integration can be
especially seen in the reduction of feed mills, which are required to have
higher standards for food safety. The stricter safety regulation is affecting
the use of antibiotics in livestock production, with the government reducing
the number of legal antibiotics for feed to 35. Innovation takes mainly place
in the collaboration of universities and testing centres with enterprises to
combine the power of effective research.
China’s
feed production for the livestock industry has experienced a huge boost in the
past years in general. The main segments of growth are hereby swine, poultry
meat, eggs, and ruminants production. Feed for swine production has seen the
biggest growth, started in 2007 and only slowed down in 2012 again.
In
2016, a rebound was found in China’s livestock and poultry farming, which
benefited an increasing feed output as well. Shrinking feed raw materials costs
has furthermore given enterprises a higher profitability. One reason for the
dropping production costs is the cancelling of China’s corn stock policy, which
pushed the price of corn down continuously since then.
According
to CCM, the year 2016 also revealed a growing number of manufacturers for feed
in China. Compared to 2015, the last year saw an increase of enterprises by
3,119. The higher profitably in the last year is the main reason for the
increasing number, which rebounded since decreasing numbers from 2011 to 2015.
In
2015, the number of feed processing enterprises fell to around 6,000 compared
with 7,000 in 2014, 10,113 in 2013 and 10,858 in 2012. The decreasing number of
feed enterprises was affected by the intensive production, massive imported
meat in China and the transformation of the sales mode.
GMO
What’s
more, China is slowly also opening the market for genetically modified crops,
which are still meeting hesitation and resistant in the population. The last
two approved GMOs have been resistant corn by Syngenta and Monsanto, valuable
for three years.
Many
GMOs are still waiting in line for approval, as China’s government is examining
all kind of foreign GMO throughout. Many international enterprises are
complaining about the lack of transparency and slow process in the review
process. The country is explaining the measurement with the concerns about GMO
resistant in the Chinese population.
The
approval of GMOs is restricted to the use of crops in the animal feed industry,
but prohibited for any planting or reproducing in China. In the face of China’s
growing middle class and therefore a boosting demand for meat and
livestock products, the country is searching for ways to ensure the supply of
all demanded food, where GMOs will play a key role to ensure a healthy
production in the future.
About CCM
CCM
is the leading market intelligence provider for China’s agriculture, chemicals,
food & ingredients and life science markets.
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