Lao pig breeders struggling with foreign competition
Lao pig breeders struggling with foreign competition
Access to finance is a major issue for Lao pig breeders who are still struggling to operate their businesses under the burden of high interest repayments to local banks.
Almost 100 percent of Lao pig breeders are still struggling to meet considerable loan interest repayments as they seek to develop and expand their businesses.
Many pig farms in Laos, especially those in Vientiane, have ceased commercial operations recently due to a lack of capital for operation, said the president of the Lao Pig Rearing Group, Mr Neuang Sombounkhan.
Meanwhile the farms still operating are concerned about foreign competition as most breeders still have limited knowledge when it comes to the technical aspects of breeding, he said.
Mr Neuang believed that if Lao pig breeders are still raising their pigs via traditional methods, their businesses would not be able survive long after the country integrates with the Asean Economic Community (AEC) at the end of this year.
Currently only a few pig farms meet modern and accepted regional standards while large numbers of farms have to improve their breeding techniques to meet the standard level, he reported.
Mr Neuang gave the example that for pig farms to operate stably they should have sufficient finances to invest in producing pig feed and piglets on their own farms because if they still have to buy pig feed and piglets they will come under financ ial pressure from competition.
To help Lao breeders maintain sustainable business operations in the country, Mr Neuang proposed that the government should resolve the loan interest issue.
Loan interest from the banks, especially the Agricultural Promotion Bank, are still high at about 14-15 percent per year, which if possible should be decreased to about 5-7 percent, he recommended.
He assured the government that if Lao breeders had sufficient funds for investment, many pig farms would develop their operations tothe required standard.
Mr Neuang said the government should examine why breeders in neighbouring countries have good technical expertise and smooth business operations and why Lao pig farmers cannot compete with them.
He also called on the government to increase its efforts to control pork prices and prevent illegal imports and impose strict penalties on violators.
The government has attempted to fix pork prices in the past but traders still take the opportunity to lower or raise their prices as they see fit, making the price controls irrelevant.
Mr Neuang recommended that after Laos integrateswith the AEC, the government should decide which sectors shall be approved for foreign investment and which sectors shall be protected for Lao entrepreneurs.
The Lao Pig Rearing Group confirmed there is a sufficient supply of pigs and pork domestically and there is no need for meat or livestock to be imported from abroad.
