Chinese pork giant WH Group will increase imports from top exporter the United States this year, with U.S. prices around half those in China, Chairman Wan Long said. WH Group has promised to grow its recently acquired American business, Smithfield, by shipping more U.S. pork to Chinese consumers hungry for high-quality meat. But imports were lower than expected last year, after a disease outbreak in the United States pushed up pig prices, making exports to China unprofitable. Small shipments of chilled pork have also ground to a halt because of strikes at U.S. West Coast ports underway since last October. Total U.S. pork exports to China fell 34 percent last year to 221,223 tons, U.S. data show. "This year our imports from the United States, whether meat or by-products, will increase because now U.S. prices are low and Chinese prices are twice as high," Wan told Reuters on Saturday. Live hogs cost around 12 yuan ($2) per kg in China, versus 6 yuan in the United States, he said. He declined to say how much imports would grow from last year's 120,000 tonnes, saying market conditions and prices would govern that. Most of the Smithfield pork goes into its processed products, which were hit by "anaemic" demand last year, the firm said last week. Sales volumes of packaged meats in China grew 0.6 percent, with turnover down 0.9 percent to $4 billion compared with 2013. Operating profit rose 4.9 percent, thanks to greater processing efficiency. Wan said pork consumption is under pressure from China's slowing economy and government measures to tackle extravagant spending by officials. Imports from the United States could also face competition from Europe, where a falling euro could make the region's pork more attractive, say industry observers. Despite such challenges, WH Group is pressing ahead with plans to open four factories to process American-style meat products using Smithfield technology, as it looks to boost revenues from branded meats. The first will open later this year in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province in east-central China, initially producing up to 50 tonnes of bacon, ham and sausages a day. Chinese consumers find U.S. pork "tasty and very tender", said Wan. WH started selling Smithfield branded products in 30 stores in Henan last March, targeting 5,000 tonnes of chilled pork imports last year. But it scaled back shipments after U.S. prices rose, and stocks have run out after the shipping disruptions. Chilled pork imports will resume when port issues are resolved, a company official said. (Reuters)