The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) was requested to work with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the General Statistics Office (GSO) to assess pork demand from now until the end of 2019.
The Deputy PM said measures are needed to ensure adequate supply in the final months, especially during the upcoming Lunar New Year, which falls in late January 2020.
Importing pork to ease the domestic shortage is also an option, according to the Deputy PM Hue.
At the same time, the GSO was assigned to assess the impact of rising pork prices on the consumer price index and to work closely with other ministries and agencies to keep inflation for 2019 and 2020 in check.
According to the Husbandry Department under MARD, the price of live pigs climbed to VND60,000-63,000 per kilogram in northern provinces on October 14 due to African swine fever and is expected to continue rising in the coming weeks.
Hog prices in the Mekong Delta also surged to up to VND62,000 per kilogram, the highest in recent years.
Deputy Director of the Husbandry Department Nguyen Van Trong said that Vietnam still has about 24-25 million pigs, which can ensure sufficient supply for the three to four final months of the year.
