{"text":[[{"start":12.23,"text":"English pork processors are seeking up to £15m of government support after China halted imports of meat, including trotters and pigs’ heads, from plants experiencing coronavirus outbreaks. "}],[{"start":25.77,"text":"The industry estimates 1m pig carcasses have been affected by the suspension of some exports to the world’s largest pork market. "}],[{"start":35.17,"text":"Chinese consumers relish parts of the pig, such as trotters and heads, that are unpopular in the UK, so selling them to China had helped maintain profitability in the UK’s £1.6bn pig sector. "}],[{"start":49.69,"text":"Pork processors and farmers have met regularly with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs this year as part of a new forum called the UK Agriculture Market Monitoring Group. "},{"start":61.657,"text":"They have discussed pressures on the industry and the potential for financial support. "}],[{"start":67.5,"text":"Farmers are separately seeking £3.2m to help them deal with the impact of a backlog of pigs on farms because of post-Brexit trade blockages. "},{"start":77.729,"text":"This has cost them extra money in feed and penalties from processors for animals slaughtered at high weights. "}],[{"start":84.53999999999999,"text":"“Margins in the meat industry are very tight at the best of times,” said Nick Allen, chief executive of the British Meat Processors Association. "},{"start":93.56899999999999,"text":"“So finding markets for these things like pigs’ heads is absolutely critical. ”"},{"start":98.29899999999999,"text":"Unwanted pig parts may be sold into lower-value markets or for pet food, he added. "}],[{"start":105.07999999999998,"text":"Defra said: “Although there are a small number of businesses that cannot currently export pork products to China, this issue is not unique to the UK. "},{"start":114.87199999999999,"text":"We recognise the challenges the sector is facing and are closely monitoring the situation. "}],[{"start":121.34999999999998,"text":"“Defra will continue to support the affected establishments, working closely with UK industry and the British embassy in Beijing, with the aim of securing the resumption of exports. ”"}],[{"start":133.51999999999998,"text":"Meat plants worldwide have been susceptible to coronavirus outbreaks. "},{"start":138.362,"text":"More than 250 people tested positive at a site run by London-listed meat processor Cranswick in Norfolk last October, while a site at Ashton-under-Lyne run by Pilgrim’s UK — ultimately owned by Brazilian meat giant JBS — has also suffered an outbreak. "}],[{"start":156.65999999999997,"text":"An official at China’s General Customs administration said it began suspending UK frozen meat imports last June after outbreaks in pork factories. "}],[{"start":167.57999999999996,"text":"“There is evidence that the virus could stay alive in low-temperature environments. "},{"start":172.68399999999997,"text":"We would rather overreact, than not reacting, when it comes to virus prevention,” the official said. "},{"start":179.22699999999995,"text":"“We will lift the import curb when there is sufficient evidence that the pandemic is under full control in the UK. "},{"start":186.08199999999997,"text":"There is no sign that has happened. ”"}],[{"start":189.22999999999996,"text":"China has rejected shipments from Brazil and the Netherlands on similar grounds, although the World Health Organization says that “as food has not been implicated in the transmission of Covid-19, imported food should be subjected to the same import controls as before the pandemic”. "}],[{"start":207.15999999999997,"text":"The UK government agreed with China last year that meat factories undergoing outbreaks would voluntarily suspend their export licences, according to people in the UK briefed on the situation. "}],[{"start":219.06999999999996,"text":"But the process of reinstating licences after outbreaks had been eradicated had slowed, two people said, suggesting broader UK-China tensions might be to blame. "}],[{"start":230.55999999999997,"text":"Zoe Davies, chief executive of the National Pig Association, said the pressures on the industry had led some farmers to quit: about 15 to 20 farmers with about 10,000 sows in total had recently left the sector. "}],[{"start":245.07999999999998,"text":"About three-quarters of pig farmers are operating at a loss, she added. "},{"start":250.059,"text":"While ministers have not so far committed to financial support, they are taking a “very keen interest” in the problem, she said. "}],[{"start":258.71,"text":"Scotland and Northern Ireland both announced funding in March for pig farmers affected by coronavirus outbreaks in processing plants. "}],[{"start":267.43,"text":"Processors in the two devolved nations had already deducted £15 from the price paid to farmers for each pig that could not be part-sold into China, so the hardship funds were paid entirely to farmers. "}],[{"start":280.46,"text":"But processors have not levied this charge in England, so any government support for them would potentially be paid direct, Allen said. "}],[{"start":289.62,"text":"Additional reporting by Sun Yu in Beijing "}],[],[{"start":293.85,"text":""}]],"url":"https://creatives.ftacademy.cn/album/001092047-1617692598.mp3"}