Part 4/11:
What makes this crisis especially severe is the collapse in demand. Pork is a staple food for the average Chinese household—a symbol of rural tradition and everyday sustenance. In a healthy economy, falling prices would stimulate increased consumption. Yet, Chinese consumers are not buying, even at these rock-bottom prices.
Why? Because households are financially strained, operating under high unemployment rates and declining consumer confidence. People are saving more, not spending. This phenomenon turns the pork glut into a clear marker of macroeconomic weakness—an indicator of how deflation is visibly manifesting in dinner plates, not just in official statistics.