June 1, 2009
France's 2008 feed review 2008 seen as misleading
The French national union of animal feed manufacturers (SNIA) held its General Assembly Thursday (May 28), and concluded that the 2008 figures do not match current developments in the feed sector.
In the immediatefuture, the animal feed industry is facing difficulties shared with that of the livestock sector resulting in a negative trend in manufacturing, according to SNIA monthly analysis.
The 2008 balance sheet is misleading because the final figures showed an increase of one percent in French production for the second consecutive year. France is the top feed producer in Europe with 22.56 million tonnes, followed by Germany at 21.8 million tonnes, and Spain at 19.2 million tonnes.
But the situation has reversed and it is unlikely that the 2009 balance sheet is still positive. Most feed are manufactured in the northwest of France- 9.2 million tonnes in Brittany and 3.9 million tonnes in Pays-de-la-Loire.
The French feed industry is very concentrated with 214 companies on 317 sites. The number of manufacturing units with low capacity decreases while the number of large manufacturers remained stable, leading to a sharp increase in average tonnage per firm, over 40 percent in seven years.