Finally $100/cwt hogs

Jul 27, 2026

Last week we finally had hog carcass prices averaging over $100/cwt. The futures market has been forecasting $100 prices for some time. Last year June, July, August and September each averaged over $100/cwt.

Hog slaughter has been near year-ago levels. Recent hog slaughter has been slightly higher than implied by the June market hog inventory. U.S. hog slaughter over the last 8 weeks (since the beginning of June) has been up 0.76% year-over-year. The heavy weight market hog inventory in the June Hogs and Pigs report implied slaughter during this period would be up 0.49% from a year ago. That is a very small difference.

The market hog inventory on June 1 was a tiny 0.05% larger than a year ago. This implies that summer and fall hog slaughter will be nearly the same as last year. The June market hog inventory has been fairly consistent for the last six years.

Hog slaughter weights have been higher than last year. Pork production is expected to be up slightly this year due largely to heavier slaughter weights. The long-term trend is for hog slaughter weights to increase by one pound per year.

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Video: Food Inflation and Pork Demand - Dr. Sylvain Charlebois

In this episode of The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, Professor and Director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University, discusses how food inflation is reshaping Canadian protein demand. He explains why pork remains competitively priced, consumer behavior, and why transparency, AI-assisted shopping, and protein demand will matter in the years ahead. Listen now on all major platforms!

"The potential of pork is there. We just need to see the product assume that role and take it away because all the elements are there."

Meet the guest: Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is a Professor in Dalhousie University's Faculty of Management and Director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab. His research focuses on food distribution, food policy, food safety, food security, and traceability. Dr. Charlebois has written four books and more than 500 peer-reviewed and scientific articles. He holds a BComm from the Royal Military College, an MBA from UQAM, and a DBA from the University of Sherbrooke. Learn more from Dr. Sylvain Charlebois on The Swine it Podcast Show Canada, available on all major platforms.