Pursuant to the Meat Union’s data, pork production grew 8 per cent to about 2m tons in Russia in 2008. Pork and pork product imports reached 1.2-1.3m tons last year. According to experts, in the first five months of 2009, the domestic pork production increase dynamics remained at 8 per cent. Federal Customs Service reports that meat imports for four months of 2009 were down 17.6 per cent if, compared with the same period in 2008, reports MeatRussia.

There are already four non-commercial associations which unite operators of the meat industry in Russia: Meat Union, Russian Poultry Union (Rosptitsesoyuz), National Meat Association, and Association of Operators of Russian Poultry Market. However, hog breeders have not had their own association before.

The fact is that more than half of the country’s pork output is produced in private farms and only one forth of the meat volumes is produced by large farms with the use of state-of-the-art technology. Experts are sure large enterprises are able to make domestically produced pork competitive in the national and world markets. Since 2005 hog stock has grown by 30 per cent, and Belgorod region being a leader among other regions, pointed out Agriculture Deputy Minister, Aleksander Belyaev assigned as the Chairman of Board of Directors of the new Union.