Companies in the GBA｜Can this pig farming company ride the pre-made food wave?

南方财经全媒体记者 杨雨莱 广州报道

When it comes to trending topics in the food industry, "pre-made dish" definitely appears at the top of the list. Like pigs caught in a tailwind, companies are seizing the opportunity, including a listed pig-farming enterprise in Guangdong province, WENS Foodstuff Group Co., Ltd.

While pig farming contributes significantly to its revenue, WENS's roots lie in chicken farming. To tell the story, one name must be mentioned: Wen Beiying, founder of WENS. Wen, hailing from a poor, remote village in Guangdong Province, is known to all locally as the "chicken-raising master". He has held a "dream of Eden" since childhood. His vision of shared wealth for farmers led him to establish a chicken-raising company. In 1983, with the momentum driven by reform and opening up, the 52-year-old Wen raised 8,000 yuan from 7 families in his village, and started his own chicken-raising company. 

In the era when the concept of a company was foreign to many, Wen introduced the joint-stock system to his fellow villagers. Instead of adopting the traditional way of raising chickens, he incorporated technology with farming in 1986, and recruited experts from South China Agriculture University to raise poultry. These efforts later expanded into pig and cattle raising.

Just like that, under the leadership of Wen, a little-known rural enterprise grew into WENS Foodstuff Group, now valued at hundreds of billions and leading the nation in chicken and pig farming. In 2022, China's pork production stood at 55.41 million tons, and poultry meat production was 24.43 million tons. Among them, WENS has 17.91 million pork pigs and 1.1 billion broilers in the market.

Pig and chicken farming is no simple matter. In the extremely scattered livestock and poultry industry, medium and small-sized farmers usually join the market when the prices are high and leave while low. The African swine fever in 2018 was an example when it led to skyrocketing pork prices. And thus a massive expansion in pig breeding in China, followed by a sharp drop in pork prices, 2021 was the year that witnessed an unprecedented slump in pork market cycle, when WENS lost over 13 billions yuan in annual profit. Despite a slight recovery in 2022, losses persisted in 2023. To mitigate cyclical risks, WENS has implemented three unique strategies.

First, foster close partnerships with farmers. Farmers are in charge of livestock and poultry raising, while WENS provides a package of services that includes breeding, forage, technology and sale. The business model that binds WENS and farmers together is called the “WENS model”.

In 2004, the outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu, cost significant losses in chicken farmers. WENS spent 3.6 billion yuan to subsidize these farmers out of its 4.4-billion-yuan profit from pig farming. Secondly, leverage internet technologies for scientific farming. When it comes to being a true “Internet pig farm”, WENS, starting from its information management of farms in the 1990s, is second to none. The IoT information platform runs information gathered from over 50,000 farmers with WENS. Information, including inventory size and production data, are all recorded in the platform.

Thirdly, diversifying the industrial chain from breeding to food processing. Early in 2004, WENS became the gladiator in the arena of ready-to-cook meals. Well-known chain dining brands such as Laoxiangji, Cafe De Coral, and Kungfu have all worked closely with the precooked food subsidiary of WENS. 

Guangdong province, where WENS is located, made a pioneering move by releasing policies that support the development of the pre-made food industry in 2022. By then, the sector in Guangdong had reached 54.5 billion yuan with a growth rate of 31.3%, far exceeding the national average. 

From the small village firm that only had “seven families and eight shares”, to the husbandry giant and pre-made meal rising star today, whether WENS can navigate cyclical challenges with its technological advancements remains to be seen.

出品：南财国际传播中心 21新媒体中心 创意互动中心

策划统筹：于晓娜 丁青云

内容统筹：谭婷

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设计统筹：林军明

视频统筹：白宇航

监制：施诗

英文翻译&配音：李莹亮

海外运营监制: 黄燕淑

海外运营内容统筹: 黄子豪

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审校：魏雯静 黄志明