Top 10 animal feed industry news stories of 2021

Find out what news articles were the most popular on FeedStrategy.com last year

African swine fever (ASF) was the most popular topic on our website last year, with five of the top 10 news stories directly related to the disease. But feed pricing and production and the animal protein market were also high on the list. The most popular news story on FeedStrategy.com in 2021 was about Mexico’s plans to ban genetically modified corn. Take a look back at last year’s most popular news:

1. Mexico bans GMO corn, plans to phase out imports

From January: Mexico has banned genetically modified corn and plans to phase out GMO corn imports and the use of glyphosate, a broad-spectrum herbicide, by January 2024.

2. ASF spreads to new areas of the Philippines

From January: For the first time, cases of African swine fever (ASF) in pigs have been found in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines.

3. Alltech: Global animal feed production up 1% in 2020

From January: Global animal feed production increased 1% in 2020 to 1,187.7 million metric tons, according to Alltech’s 2021 Global Feed Survey.

4. Mutant ASF virus strains in China cause alarm

From March: A Chinese study reveals the emergence of new variants of the African swine fever (ASF) virus that may make disease control even harder to achieve.

5. China confirms ASF outbreak, new virus strains

From January: In China, the first cases of African swine fever (ASF) in pigs have been reported in 3 months, while emergence of new virus strains threaten the future productivity of the national pig herd.

6. USDA suggests high corn, soybean prices here to stay

From April: U.S. producers could face another year of high corn and soybean prices after initial planting estimates from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) came in lower than expected.

7. China issues guidance on reducing corn, soy use in feed

From April: China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has published guidelines that recommend lowering the amount of corn and soybean meal in pig and poultry feed.

8. Rabobank: Global animal protein markets to settle in 2022

From November: Global animal protein markets will begin to settle in 2022, but many drivers of change – higher input costs, transition to more sustainable protein, biosecurity and COVID-19 – will remain, according to a new Rabobank report.

9. Philippines begins first ASF vaccine tests

From April: First trials with an African swine fever (ASF) vaccine are being conducted on 10 farms in the Philippines.

10. Philippines prepares to launch ASF vaccine

From July: Official roll-out of an ASF vaccine in the Philippines could start in just one month’s time.

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