On Monday, June 3, China called on provincial authorities to offer financial support to farms and large pig farms to help them stabilize pork production after African swine fever caused a sharp reduction in their numbers.

Credit guarantee providers should actively provide loan services for breeding farms and large farms that produce more than 5,000 pigs per year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China said on its official website.

In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China called for guarantees on expiring loans for farmers and simplify loan guarantees, as well as reduce the processing time.

The message indicates that interest rates on bank loans for farm companies should be limited to 2%.

These actions were taken after a statement by the Ministry of Agriculture that the breeding stock of China in April fell by 22% compared to last year.

This was the biggest drop in history and caused serious concern about the lack of pork in the world's largest meat producer and consumer.