Several weeks ago I wrote about my thoughts regarding the future direction of slaughter weights in the US. As most of you will recall, the data suggests heavier weights in future years, even as we hear of packer concerns regarding … Continue reading
Last week I was a speaker at the 44th annual Banff Swine Seminar in Banff, Alberta. Attendance was 650 people for the 2 day event with good speakers and hallway interactions. About 40% of the audience was pork producers with … Continue reading
We’re 2 weeks into 2015 and slaughter weights are still much heavier than last year. So far this year barrow and gilt carcass weights are running about 2-3 lb heavier that the same day last year. Iowa-SMN live weights year … Continue reading
With less capital tied up in margin calls this year than last year and following a year of overall profit, many producers are reinvesting in production facilities. The USDA December Hogs and Pigs report documented that we’re growing the US … Continue reading
This morning it was -12F with the weatherman saying cold will be with us all week. I’m sure the production facilities in this region have ice forming on ceiling inlets, entry points, etc. In many cases there is ice and/or … Continue reading
I receive newsletters and commentary from my industry connections around the world. One advantage of these connections is the ability to think about how the US industry is doing relative to other major production locations around the world. I don’t … Continue reading
The wild gyrations in both the grain and livestock futures markets this week serve as a very good reminder that US agriculture is not an isolated production system. With talk of a possible collapse of the Russian ruble and the … Continue reading
As producers invest recent profits back into facilities (both new and remodeled), now is the time to give some thought to equipment operating costs. I’m referring here to ventilation fans and their CFM/watt ratings. While US electric expense ($/kWh) is … Continue reading
Is expansion finally happening in the swine industry? In the past few weeks I’ve talked with a lot of gilt suppliers, builders and equipment suppliers and I think the answer is a resounding – YES. Many gilt suppliers are telling … Continue reading
Last week I had a discussion with a producer who was familiar with many of the details of the fire and animal loss at the sow unit near Truman, Minnesota recently. This led to a discussion of what should producers … Continue reading