China’s African swine fever outbreak is far more severe than previously thought and the full impact of the disease on animal feed producers has yet to be realized, U.S. agribusiness company Archer Daniels Midland Co said on Wednesday.
According to a report at Reuters, the fatal pig disease has slashed China’s hog herd by as much as half since August 2018 and has already lifted margins for processing soybeans into animal feed, Ray Young, ADM’s chief financial officer, told the Stephens Nashville Investment Conference.
As China relies more on imported pork and less on domestic production, ADM is expected to benefit as other countries expand livestock production to feed China. This boosts demand for ADM’s feed ingredients like soymeal.
ADM operates 45 oilseed crushing and origination plants in Europe and the Americas, but none in China.
Read the full report here.
