August 2026, Week 4

This week's key points

• —Japan: July pork imports up 11% y/y — Brazil and the Netherlands make up for lower Spanish supply
• —US: Ham cutout falls for a fifth week, down 29% y/y — cold storage stocks at the highest since 2019
• —US: Preliminary weekly slaughter moves above last year, up 1.4% y/y
• —EU: Pig prices (carcass-weight basis) rebound 7.8% from the July low — only Spain holds flat

Japan: July pork imports up 11% y/y — Brazil and the Netherlands make up for lower Spanish supply

Latest: Imports in July 2026 were 116,437 tonnes, up 10.8% y/y. By category: chilled 38,303 tonnes (+12.0%), frozen 57,625 tonnes (+13.1%), processed products such as hams and sausages 15,987 tonnes (+1.7%), and pig fat, casings and other items 4,522 tonnes. Year to date: January–July imports totaled 760,215 tonnes, up 6.2% y/y.