China’s new animal feed standards set to lower soybean consumption, ministry says

New standards of protein content in animal feed that China announced on Friday will cut the country’s annual consumption of soybean meal by 11 million tonnes and soybeans by 14 million tonnes, according to a statement from the agricultural ministry.

China is entering what is typically its top buying season for US soybeans, a critical source of protein in livestock feeds, and higher tariffs as a result of the Sino-US trade war could drive up prices.

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The China Feed Industry Association on Friday approved new standards for the feed for pigs and chickens, lowering the protein levels in pig feed by 1.5 percentage points and those for chickens by one percentage point, the ministry said.

It did not give a timeline for when the new standards will take effect.

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China, the world’s top consumer of the oilseed, is seeking various ways to cut soybean meal in animal feed including turning to alternative meals and reducing protein levels.

The measures came after Beijing imposed 25 per cent tariffs on US$34 billion worth of US products including soybeans on July 6, in retaliation to US tariffs on Chinese goods of the same amount.

Soybean meal futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange for January delivery last traded at 3,383 yuan (US$486) per tonne on Friday, up nearly a quarter since the start of the year.