FairPrice, market stallholders prepare for rising Chinese New Year pork demand

Key Concepts

• Live Pig Imports: Singapore relies heavily on live pig imports, primarily from Malaysia, to meet pork demand.
• Traceability: A robust traceability system (SFA pink stripe with numerical codes) is in place to track pork from origin to consumer.
• Fresh Pork Preference: Singaporean consumers strongly prefer fresh pork over chilled or frozen alternatives.
• Price Control Measures: Supermarkets and stallholders are implementing strategies to manage price increases during Chinese New Year.
• Demand for Offal: Increased demand for traditionally less popular pork cuts (pig skin, trotters) from Chinese restaurants.
• Wet Market Trends: Declining sales volume observed in wet markets.

Increased Pork Demand & Price Management for Chinese New Year in Singapore

This report details the preparations being made in Singapore to meet the anticipated surge in pork demand during the upcoming Chinese New Year (CNY) period, alongside efforts to mitigate price increases. The core of Singapore’s pork supply chain relies on live pig imports, with over 3,000 arriving weekly from Malaysia.

Supply Chain & Processing

FairPrice Group, a major supermarket chain, anticipates a need for 20% more pigs than usual for CNY, a 5 percentage point increase compared to last year’s demand. The process begins with the arrival of live pigs at Singapore’s port, followed by slaughtering at the nation’s sole abattoir. Subsequent processing occurs at a facility in Jurong, ensuring the pork reaches retail shelves within a 48-hour timeframe. A key aspect of this process is stringent food safety monitoring.

Traceability System – SFA Pink Stripe

A crucial element of food safety and consumer confidence is the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) pink stripe affixed to the pork. This stripe features the word “Singapore Pass” and a three-digit code. The first digit, ‘8’, signifies OJJ (Origin, Journey, and Jaccard – a reference to traceability methodology). The second digit, ‘42’, represents the individual pig number, assigned to one of the 450 pigs processed daily. The final digit, ‘64’, indicates the processing batch. This system allows for complete traceability of the pork.

Shifting Demand Patterns

Beyond prime cuts, the report highlights a growing demand for traditionally less popular parts of the pig, such as pig skin and trotters. This increase, reaching up to 20% this year, is driven by demand from Chinese Food & Beverage (FnB) restaurants. This allows for optimized utilization of the entire pig carcass, reducing waste. The processing company is actively moving these “non-illable cuts” into the market.

FairPrice’s Strategy & Consumer Preference

FairPrice is unique in that it directly imports live pigs. Fresh meat accounts for over half of their pork sales. To maintain accessibility for consumers, FairPrice is planning to announce a price freeze as early as next week. A spokesperson emphasized, “Singaporeans pallets are very discerning. They certainly prefer fresh pork over chilled or frozen pork. So, we have seen that over the last few years the demand for fresh pork has been increasing. Especially at our stores.” This preference for fresh pork is a significant driver of the import strategy.

Wet Market Dynamics & Price Increases

Across wet markets visited by CNA, most stallholders intend to limit any price increases to within 10%. One stallholder explained, “Volume of the sauce will be more around 50% more…the price wise will be slightly increased by 10% because our sauce come also the price will rise a bit.” Despite the anticipated increase in volume due to CNY stocking, stallholders acknowledge a broader trend of declining sales at wet markets. This decline is presented as part of a wider trend impacting wet market sales overall.

Overall Trend

The report concludes by noting the declining sales trend in wet markets, suggesting a shift in consumer purchasing habits. Despite this, the demand for pork, particularly fresh pork, remains strong, necessitating careful supply chain management and price control measures during the CNY period.