Chinese vice premier stresses pork supply for upcoming holidays

BEIJING -- China will take multiple measures to meet pork consumption demand in the upcoming New Year and Spring Festival holidays and strive to keep pork prices stable, according to a recent meeting on restoring hog production.

When addressing the meeting, Vice-Premier Hu Chunhua said pork consumption would grow intensively during the first quarter and efforts must be made to prevent short supply.

He stressed the need to encourage hog producers to expand hog production, saying that more reserved pork and substitutes such as beef, mutton and poultry meat should be released to the market.

In the meantime, market supervision must be tightened to prevent hoarding, profiteering and price rigging.

Contingency plans need to be made to cope with adverse weather which might make it more difficult to increase pork supply, he said.

Social relief and aid shall be activated to help those who are financially challenged.

"To keep hog prices stable and secure pork supply, the most fundamental way is to restore hog production," he said, urging local authorities to take effective measures to meet the goals.