African swine fever (ASF) and the ongoing Russian ban on imports of pork from the EU are still dictating market activity in Europe.

Further price decreases have been seen on the EU mature pigs market since last week, when a few states still managed to maintain stable prices. Some (ASF-free) individual member states were criticised for entering into dialogue with Russia on relaxing the ban on a state-by-state basis. EU leaders felt this undermined the bloc's position.

In Poland, where the disease was detected in wild boar early last month, prices are said to be under extreme pressure, though no data has been released for the past fortnight.

Russian veterinary authorities informed the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) on Monday (3 March) that ASF had been detected in eight more wild boar in the Volgograd region in the West of the country.

Meanwhile, the German quotation also succumbed to processors' demands and dropped by 5 cents last week, settling just below €1.40/kg. Dutch prices also took a 4 cent hit, alongside Belgian and Danish quotations, which each fell by around 2 cents.

According to German industry group ISN, the Russian ban cannot be expected to lift anytime soon, though Russian groups are said to be complaining about supply bottlenecks. According to the Dutch Boerderij, the USA will most probably be allowed to resume pork exports to Russia from 10th March, though the relationship between Russia and the States has been severely strained as a result of the Crimea crisis.

This was illustrated this week by the cancellation at short notice of an invite for several Russian veterinary surgeons to attend WTO negotiations on standards for animal and plant exports Kazakhsta, which is undergoing accession.

So far, the Austrian prices have remained steady, and in Britain, producers saw an upswing, as price fluctuations which have characterised the market since the beginning of the year continue. GB prices rose 3 cents to €1.84/kg last week.

Southern Europe appears less affected by the current situation. In Spain and Italy, prices remained stable and in France quotations increased by 2 cents.   

ISN said that, in light of the extraordinary geopolitical situation arising, "market participants [are] obviously at a loss" predicting future movements. However, on Tuesday the group said, "Altogether, the market situation is well balanced. So, from the ISN's point of view no room should be left for further price decreases."