Pork production in the EU saw a 3.3% year-on-year growth in March to 2.0 million tonnes, according to the latest data from Eurostat.
However, beef production fell by 0.4% to 0.6 million tonnes compared to the same period last year.
According to Eurostat, these figures indicate that the production of beef and pork in the EU was not immediately affected by the containment measures implemented in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Member States that reported an increase in pigmeat production include Spain (+12.7%), Netherlands (+6.1%), Germany (+3.9%), France (+1.4%), and Poland (+1.3%).
Beef Production
The decline in beef production was driven by a slump in Italy (-41.5%), Poland (-10.7%), and Germany (-6.5%), despite growth in France (+1.1%) and the Netherlands (+19.8%).
In March 2020, the slaughter of calves in the EU was 4.3% lower compared to the same period last year, while cow slaughter rates dropped by 5.7%, data showed.
However, the slaughter of bulls and bullocks increased by 4.5% in this period.
The overall drop in the quantity of meat from calves in the EU was an outcome of the decline in production in Italy (-10.9%), the Netherlands (-8.0%), Belgium (-7.3%), and France (‑5.5%).
In Italy, the drop in beef production is a result of the ongoing restructuring of the industry, the report revealed.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
