Foot-and-mouth disease in Germany causes concerns in Danish Crown
On Friday afternoon, it was revealed that foot-and-mouth disease had been detected in a herd near Berlin in Germany. This immediately stopped the export of pork and beef to all countries outside Europe that require the exporting nation to be free of foot-and-mouth disease. On Monday evening, the UK also decided to stop all imports of German pork and beef until further notice.
"It came as a surprise to all market players that the UK chose to stop importing German meat. It was expected that the British would handle the situation as if they were still part of the EU – where virtually all German meat can still be traded freely - but they chose to introduce an immediate stop to importing German meat. As a result, enormous amounts of meat must now find new routes around Europe", says Per Fischer Larsen, SVP Industry Sales at Danish Crown.
Danish Crown operates a pig slaughterhouse and two cattle slaughterhouses in Germany. Exports of pork from Germany to countries outside Europe have been limited since 2020 due to African swine fever in Germany. South Korea and Vietnam had opened imports last year, but have now again imposed an immediate import ban.
Exports of beef from Germany out of Europe have largely stopped. Danish Crown's two cattle slaughterhouses have so far had minor exports to a number of countries in Asia and North America, which have now been suspended.
"It's really tough, because these are very much specialty products that other customers will not immediately pay the same prices for. It's too early to say how much this will cost us in lost revenue. Right now, our focus is on handling the situation and ensuring continued efficient operation of our two German slaughterhouses", says Finn Klostermann, CEO of Danish Crown Beef.
All three Danish Crown slaughterhouses in Germany are an integral part of the group's overall setup and supply Danish Crown's many processing plants across Europe. Here, it must now be ensured that no goods exported to the UK contain German raw materials, regardless of whether the products are salted, smoked or heat-treated.
"The flow of meat and goods around Europe will be turned upside down overnight. It is a big task for everyone, and even though it means a lot of extra work, it is an advantage for us that we currently have access to Danish raw materials. That is why we are already well on our way to reorganizing our production. On the sales side, we are concentrating on being in close contact with customers so that we can find the best possible solutions for everyone, because that is also the way to ensure Danish Crown's owners the best possible settlement", says Per Fischer Larsen.
Foot-and-mouth disease cannot be transmitted to humans, but is fatal to all cloven-hoofed animals that are infected.
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