In an interview with Farmer.pl, Jacek Strzelecki, expert on the Chinese market and managing director of the Polish Meat Association, comments on the initiation of an anti-dumping investigation against EU pork exporters announced by Beijing.
According to Jacek Strzelecki, the basic issue is the validity of the accusations made by Beijing:
– Pork has been exported to China for years and the current terms of trade have not raised any objections from the Chinese side. We are clearly dealing here with a decision of a political nature, not an economic one. Perhaps this is related to the European Commission’s plans to impose customs duties on the import of Chinese electric cars, says the expert.
Tug of war
According to Strzelecki, yesterday’s decision by China should be seen as the opening of negotiations between Brussels and Beijing. The already mentioned imposition of tariffs on electric cars is on the line:
-Of course, imposing high customs duties or completely blocking the access of EU pork producers to the Chinese market is possible, but I interpret today’s decision of the Chinese Ministry of Trade MOFCOM as opening the field for negotiations between Beijing and Brussels. The initiation of an anti-dumping investigation primarily affects the leading EU exporters of pork to China, i.e. Spain, France, the Netherlands and Denmark. Therefore, MOFCOM’s announcement about initiating the proceedings is a kind of putting pressure on the governments of these countries to take care of their Chinese interests within the EU forum – says the specialist.
What does the suspension of pork exports mean for the European Union?
According to Jacek Strzelecki, the impact of a possible restriction of access to the Chinese market for EU pork producers cannot be overestimated.
– In 2023, this direction was responsible for over 25%. all EU exports of meat and pork products, and the value of sales to the Chinese market was approximately EUR 2.5 billion. If access to such a absorbent market is lost, there are two options – either there will be a drastic drop in pork prices on the EU market, or a significant reduction in the pig population. It should also be remembered that if EU pork disappears from the Chinese market, other producers, such as Brazil or the USA, will fill the gap. This may turn out to be a one-way street and EU pork will no longer have a chance to return to China. – sums up our interlocutor.
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