Vietnam livestock companies report strong profits in 2024

After two tough years, livestock businesses in Vietnam strongly rebounded in 2024 thanks to the high prices of pork and significantly reduced feed costs compared to previous periods.

Profits surge

The livestock sector experienced two challenging years in 2022-2023 due to rising feed costs and a sharp drop in live hog prices, especially in the second half of 2023, when prices fell below VND50,000 ($1.98) per kilogram. Farmers and businesses struggled to make a profit, with some even facing losses.

However, in 2024, pork prices rebounded strongly to around VND65,000 ($2.57) per kg. By the end of the year, driven by seasonal demand for pork for the Lunar New Year (Tet), prices rose to VND68,000-69,000 per kg, or even VND71,000-72,000 in some regions.

As a result, numerous livestock businesses reported significant profits. Dabaco Group (HoSE: DBC), a major player based in the northern province of Bac Ninh, announced a consolidated revenue of VND13.57 trillion ($537 million) in 2024, up 22.5% compared to 2023.

Its gross profit margin increased from 9.9% to 14%, and after-tax profit hit VND769 billion ($30.43 million), 30.8 times higher than the previous year.

The company attributed its improved performance to high hog prices, stable feed ingredient prices (both domestic and imported), controlled livestock diseases, farmers’ efforts to restock herds and higher feed consumption.

BAF Vietnam Agricultural JSC set a record since its listing on the HoSE as BAF with a post-tax profit of VND324 billion ($12.82 million) in 2024, 10.7 times higher than the previous year. While its revenue only increased by 7%, the cost of goods sold decreased by 1%, improving its gross profit margin from 6.6% to 13.2%.

BAF noted that the pork market last year saw prices rise to above VND60,000 ($2.37) per kg, with a trend approaching VND70,000. The company’s pork production volume also nearly doubled compared to the previous year, thanks to a continuous expansion strategy.

Moreover, the cost of raw materials for animal feed production decreased compared to earlier periods and remained at a lower level, helping reduce production costs and increase livestock efficiency. Additionally, the company gained some extra profits from selling a plot of land on Ho Chi Minh City’s Mai Chi Tho street recorded in the first quarter.

Being a giant in the steel industry, Hoa Phat Group (HoSE: HPG) also had a successful year in agriculture. Its agricultural segment generated more than VND7.08 trillion ($280.2 million) in revenue, up 12% year-on-year, and VND1.04 trillion ($41.16 million) in after-tax profit, over five times higher than in 2023.

Its poultry segment also saw impressive results, with egg production reaching 330 million eggs, and the company's egg distribution network expanded to over 100 supermarkets across the country.

Masan MeatLife JSC (MML), a subsidiary of retail giant Masan Group, officially ended its losses after three years of selling its animal feed business to focus on livestock. According to its consolidated financial statement for Q4/2024, the company, which owns the MEATDeli brand, recorded VND7.65 trillion ($302.73 million) in revenue, up 9.6% year-on-year, thanks to growth in its chilled and processed meat segments.

Its gross profit margin rose from 14.3% to 25.6%, thanks to optimized production costs, especially in its poultry farms, and reduced feed costs. Therefore, the company turned a loss of VND540 billion into a profit of VND25.3 billion (over $1 million).

Major reshuffle of livestock industry

According to a recent report by Tien Phong Securities (TPS), Vietnam's livestock industry is set for a major reshuffle in 2025-2026, creating opportunities for large businesses to make systematic investments.

Specifically, consumers are increasingly focusing on health and food safety, while rising production costs and complex disease outbreaks are diminishing smallholder farming. At the same time, the market share of large-scale, closed-loop livestock businesses is growing due to their advantages in production costs and low waste rates.

The 2018 Law on Animal Husbandry, effective since 2020, prohibits livestock farming in areas not permitted by cities, towns, or residential areas. Under this law, local authorities must relocate non-compliant livestock operations by January 1, 2025.

This regulation will force some small-scale farmers to cease operations if they are unable to relocate, resulting in a reduced supply. This creates a significant opportunity for large-scale livestock companies to expand their market share, according to the broker.

Furthermore, the farm-based livestock model is reshaping the Vietnamese livestock industry, making it more sustainable by mitigating the impacts of diseases and fluctuations in feed prices. With advantages in scale, infrastructure, and capital, livestock businesses are better positioned to implement advanced technologies in production, leading to cost reductions, particularly in feed consumption per kg of weight gain.

Global pork production in 2025 is expected to reach 115.1 million tons, a decrease of 0.8% year-on-year. This decline is primarily due to reduced supply in China and the EU, which outpaces the increase in supply in the U.S., Vietnam, and Brazil.

Vietnam’s pork production is forecast to reach 3.8 million tons, an increase of 3% from the previous year, thanks to an anticipated expansion of the pig herd as the African swine fever (ASF) is better controlled.