CPF pitches "Cheeva Pork" under U Farm brand of biochemical-free meats
Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) has introduced its “U Farm” brand of meats that are free from biochemicals for consumers conscious about food safety and animal welfare, chief executive officer Prasit Boondoungprasert said.
“Under the U Farm brand, Cheeva Pork is high quality meat that contains a high volume of good fat and Omega 3 for health conscious consumers. It is now available at selected retailers including Central, The Mall, Foodland, Villa and CP Fresh Mart,” Prasit said.
“Next, we will push for export of Cheeva Pork to Hong Kong and Japan, markets where we had previously successfully penetrated with U Farm’s Benja chicken meat and processed pork,” he said.
According to Prasit, pigs for Cheeva Pork will be raised without the use of biochemicals or growth hormones in group pens that allow the animals to move around freely while the facility is air conditioned by evaporators. The pigs will not receive any vaccine for at least a month before going to the slaughterhouse to ensure there is no chemical residue in the meat.
“Cheeva Pork is certified by NSF International, an American product testing, inspection and certification organisation. This brand of pork also received the food innovation award at the ThaiFex-Anuga Asia 2020 trade exhibition last month,” Prasit said.
“The cost of producing Cheeva Pork is roughly 10 per cent higher than ordinary pork, with a capacity of 400-500 pigs per day, which could be expanded when market demand increases,” he added.
CPF executive vice president of the firm’s pig business Somporn Jermpong said the company now has approximately 900,000 breeder pigs in its domestic and foreign farms, making it the world’s third largest breeder pig producer.
“The second place goes to a manufacturer in China, which has a little over 1 million breeder pigs, making it quite possible for us to overtake them soon and grab the title of the world’s 2nd largest breeder pig producer,” he said.
In Thailand, CPF produces around 5 million pigs per year and is the biggest producer in the market of around 18 million swine per year.
“Our production capacity is expanding at 1-2 per cent annually, with most of the pigs being bred for domestic consumption. Exports, in the form of processed pork, are only responsible for a small portion,” Somporn said.
“Due to the African Swine Fever outbreak, China is suffering from a pig-supply shortage and is looking to import pigs from Russia, where we also have farms. So this is a good chance to expand our presence in the Chinese market,” he added.
