I keep 2 data sets on weekly US slaughter weights. One is the Iowa/S Minn/SDak data series of producer sold barrow and gilt live weight (NW_LS720) and the other is a weighted weekly average of all barrow and gilt carcass … Continue reading →

Much has been written about the new slaughter plants in Iowa and Michigan that are expected to begin slaughtering pigs within 1-2 months. Of concern to producers is the large increase in the kept for market inventory in the June … Continue reading →

There is renewed interest regarding the impact of space per pig on both pig performance and the financials associated with this performance. More than 25 years ago Dr Tim Powell and I published a paper examining the economics of space … Continue reading →

The 4th of July holiday is tomorrow. Many readers of this blog in the United States are taking today as a vacation day so market activities will be diminished somewhat. At the same time, life in production units continues as … Continue reading →