Minor Decline in U.S. Hog Counts Reported

Mar 28, 2025
By Farms.com

USDA Unveils Updated Statistics on Hog and Pig Numbers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service has released its latest Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report, showing a slight downturn in the U.S. swine population.

As of the start of March 2025, there were 74.5 million hogs and pigs on U.S. farms, reflecting a slight year-over-year decrease and a 1% fall since December 2024.

The breakdown of the numbers shows 68.5 million are market hogs, with the remainder, approximately 5.98 million, being kept for breeding purposes. During the period from December 2024 to February 2025, producers weaned 33.7 million pigs, maintaining an average of 11.65 pigs per litter.

Producers are gearing up for the next farrowing seasons, projecting to farrow 2.91 million sows from March to May 2025 and another 2.96 million from June to August. Iowa leads the pack in hog inventories with 24.3 million, followed by Minnesota's 9.2 million and North Carolina's 8.1 million.

The data for this report was collected from 4,455 hog producers nationwide, employing a mix of online submissions, mail, phone, and in-person interviews, demonstrating the rigorous efforts to accurately assess the state of the U.S. hog industry.

Video: WARNING! Rough Start To Breeding Season!!

WARNING! Sheep Breeding Season Begins With A Bang! Breeding season is officially underway at Ewetopia Farms, but it didn’t exactly start the way we planned!

This vlog begins with us sorting through our rams to find the perfect match for a customer’s breeding program. What should have been routine quickly turned dangerous when one of our more nervous rams panicked. In seconds, Arnie’s knee was injured, and then I was slammed hard onto the concrete floor — both of us taken down by one ram!

Thankfully, it was just bruises, but it’s a reminder of how unpredictable and powerful mature rams can be. Once we recovered, it was time to get back to the real work — the start of breeding season.

We sorted the ewes into four breeding groups (two Suffolk and two Dorset), checking parentage as they ran through the chute, deworming those that needed it, and setting aside thinner ewes for session two of breeding season in a month’s time.This staggered approach keeps lambing organized and prevents overcrowding in the barns.

From rogue rams to the excitement of new breeding groups, this episode is full of action. Stay tuned for the next vlog, where we’ll share how we chose the rams for each group!