Polish hog margins narrow as slaughter prices fall and feed grain costs rise

Slaughterhouses cut hog purchase prices

Conditions for Polish hog producers deteriorated in week 35 of 2026 as most slaughterhouses reduced purchase prices for class E hogs by PLN 0.10–0.20 per kilogram. AgroNews reported that some offers had fallen to about PLN 6.60–6.90 per kilogram carcass weight, bringing Polish quotations close to Germany’s reference price.

Liveweight hog prices in Poland were generally PLN 5.00–5.80 per kilogram, while class E animals averaged about PLN 6.80–6.90 per kilogram. Prices above PLN 7 per kilogram were available only for some larger deliveries. Aleksander Dargiewicz, president of the industry organization POLPIG, said the combination of lower hog prices and rising costs for basic feed grains was again reducing farm margins.

Prices were steadier elsewhere in Europe. Germany’s VEZG reference remained at EUR 1.60 per kilogram carcass weight, equivalent to about PLN 6.93 per kilogram at the end of August. Denmark and the Netherlands also recorded no major changes. France gained EUR 0.04 to EUR 1.93 per kilogram, while Spain rose EUR 0.03 to EUR 1.77. According to DG Agri data cited by AgroNews, the average EU price for class E hogs was about EUR 1.61 per kilogram in week 34.

Cheaper piglets fail to offset grain increases

The piglet market stabilized after earlier increases. Imported piglets weighing about 30 kilograms became PLN 5.88 cheaper at approximately PLN 213 per head. Domestic piglets declined by an average PLN 0.72 to about PLN 254 per head. Germany’s base quotation held at EUR 40 per head, with no significant changes reported in Denmark or the Netherlands.

Although cheaper piglets reduce the entry cost for finishing farms, AgroNews said the decline was too small to compensate for weaker finished-hog prices and dearer feed. Feed wheat increased by an average PLN 8.89 per tonne during the week to approximately PLN 787.04. Corn recorded the sharpest rise, gaining PLN 34.56 to PLN 913.13 per tonne.

Rapeseed was the notable exception, falling by about PLN 53.30 to PLN 2,275.87 per tonne. That decline did not balance the increases in grains widely used in pig rations. Farms that purchase a large share of their feed or components on the open market are particularly exposed because each increase passes directly into finishing costs.

Autumn supply poses an additional risk

The European pork market remains relatively balanced, but sector representatives see a risk of greater supply in the autumn. AgroNews identified higher Spanish production and an increased number of Danish finished hogs being sent to Germany for slaughter as possible sources of additional availability. If supply rises while demand weakens, purchase prices could face another downward move.

Dargiewicz said the most damaging combination would be a continued decline in hog prices alongside persistently high feed costs. The squeeze comes against a long contraction in Poland’s production base. Industry organizations cited in the report estimate that the number of Polish pig herds has fallen from nearly 250,000 in 2015 to about 41,000, a decline of more than 80%. Low profitability, investment and biosecurity expenses, African swine fever and increasing production concentration were identified as the main causes. The direction of hog prices, feed grain quotations and Europe’s autumn pork supply will now shape farms’ production decisions and determine whether the latest price decline remains a short correction or develops into a longer trend.