CP Cambodia, a subsidiary of Thai conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Company Limited, has confirmed plans to double its swine production by 2019 to meet Cambodia’s demand for pork products.

Uthai Tantipimolphan, president of CP Cambodia, which specialises in livestock breeding, on Friday said the company will spend $8 million to increase production from the current one million heads of swine, to two million over five years.

“Cambodia needs nearly 200,000 of swine per month.… CP has a long vision for investment in Cambodia, because the company sees that Cambodia has very big potential to be an agricultural production base,” he said.

Currently, CP Cambodia supplies some 60,000 heads of swine – both piglets and 3-week-old weaning piglets – to local markets per month.

According to the Cambodian Pig Raising Association, Cambodia imports more than 1,000 head of swine from neighbouring nations such as Vietnam and Thailand every month.