New price reporting from pig sellers to replace DAPP

BPEX has unveiled the successor to the under-pressure Deadweight Average Pig Price (DAPP) system.

The new GB All Pigs Price (GB APP) will be formed in the same way as the DAPP, except data will be gathered from pig sellers rather than buyers and it will be reported a fortnight after the pigs were killed.

The DAPP – a voluntary survey of prices paid by abattoirs in the previous week – is used by many processors to determine future prices on contracts.

The sample size was hit in January when Cranswick Country Foods and Karro Food Group decided to stop reporting their data.

The GB APP and DAPP will run alongside each other for six months from 16 April and then the GB APP will take over.

Lizzie Press, acting general manager of the National Pig Association, said she was disappointed it had reached this point, but was pleased with the result.

“I think long term it is positive that we are in control of our own destiny,” she said. “The GB APP will still be robust and it won’t be vulnerable to processors withdrawing as they see fit.

“It will give greater confidence to producers. It may even be more representative than it has been.”

She said retailers, processors and producers would have to “take into consideration” that the new system would be slightly more historic than the DAPP.

BPEX director Mick Sloyan said good quality market information was vital for efficient and competitive pig production and processing.

“This enhancement will deliver a robust and sustainable price reporting system,” he said. “It will also give those in the industry who follow the DAPP a transition period to develop an understanding of the GB APP.

“We will continue to look at additional historic price data that might be of benefit to the industry. I would strongly urge producers and processors not to use historical price reporting as a means to determine pig future prices.”