While prices per kilogram of pork have been steadily decreasing in the country, prices for pig feed such as corn continue to climb, said Pan Lian-chou, head of the R.O.C Swine Association.

The use of corn as an alternative fuel by countries such as the United States has caused a decrease of those countries’ corn exports, and thereby contribute to the feed item’s high prices, said Chang Yu-chi, chairperson of the R.O.C. Federation of Swine Cooperatives.

The average whole sale price of every 100 kilograms of pork is NT$5,000, and prices in central and southern regions of the country can fall as low as NT$4,500, which are far below the ideal price of NT$55 per kilogram, said Chang in a report of the United Evening News.

In the meantime, prices of pork in countries such as the United States and China have increased by 10 percent, said Pan.

If the government does not take notice of the pig farmers’ dire situation in the country, many will be forced out of business by the middle of the year, said Pan.

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