The volume of pork traded between EU Member States declined nearly 5 percent in 2012 than in previous years as supply tightened for some key exporters, such as Denmark and the Netherlands, according to Eurostat. Annually about 5 million tons of pig meat is traded between EU Member States, however far more is shipped to non-EU markets.
About 85 percent of pork products originate from six Member States. Ireland is the only other Member State that exports more pork to the rest of the EU than it imports. Germany is the largest exporter to other EU Member States but last year it also was the leading importer of EU pork.
In contrast, 20 Member States were net importers of pork from elsewhere in the EU. Italy, Poland, UK, Czech Republic, Greece and Romania all imported at least 100,000 tons more than they exported in 2012. Several smaller Member States import significant quantities of pork while and export very little. Ten EU countries recorded increased imports in 2012, mostly as a result of higher demand following sharp falls in domestic production.
Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany were the three leading exporters of cured pork products, and the UK was the main market for all three. Italy and Spain also were significant exporters of specialty hams, with France and Germany the two leading markets.
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