Wilmar’s planning to expand amid a challenging period for Asia’s animal feed industry. As African swine fever continues to spread, hog production in China will probably drop by 134 million head this year, equivalent to the entire annual output of American pigs, the US Department of Agriculture estimated in April. For hog feed suppliers, it means slumping margins from crushing beans.
(June 12): Wilmar International, one of the world’s largest food producers, is planning to boost its soybean crushing capacity in China even as a deadly pig-killing virus cuts demand for animal feed.
Singapore-based Wilmar will build new plants as part of a project to construct integrated manufacturing complexes in the country, the company said in an emailed statement, without giving a schedule. The group is bullish on the long-term prospects for China and is confident that animal meal demand will eventually recover, it said.
