Developer China Vanke moves into pig farming as property fails to bring home the bacon
- According to job vacancies advertised on its website, China Vanke is planning to breed 250,000 pigs a year as it aims to sell pork and other foods
- The move comes as Chinese developers struggle to turn a profit amid a slumping property market
When the going gets tough, China’s property developers have been known to get creative, diversifying into more profitable industries. Evergrande Group, for example, famously jumped into the electric car business two years ago, pledging to take on the likes of Tesla.
Now China Vanke, the nation’s third-largest homebuilder, is poised to make an even more unlikely move: into pig farming.
According to job vacancies advertised on its website, Vanke is planning to breed 250,000 pigs a year as it aims to sell pork and other foods in an apparent attempt to weather China’s struggling property market.
It said in the job ads it has established a new food business unit with a focus on pig breeding, vegetable growing and corporate catering, and is now hiring people to get it off the ground.
Five positions are being advertised, including pig farming manager, business development experts and vets, with responsibilities ranging from implementing a healthy swine breeding system to building up the pork production line.
“Vanke will aim to provide healthy food at affordable prices, and will join peers in the whole chain, from farm to table,” Vanke said in the job post. It said it was inspired by runaway pork prices and the inconvenience of getting food during the pandemic outbreak.
The company did not provide any further details when approached by the Post.