USDA Hogs & Pigs Report - Inventory Up 4%

Dec 24, 2016

United States Hog Inventory Up 4 Percent

United States inventory of all hogs and pigs on December 1, 2016 was 71.5 million head. This was up 4 percent from

December 1, 2015, and up slightly from September 1, 2016.

Breeding inventory, at 6.09 million head, was up 1 percent from last year, and up 1 percent from the previous quarter.

Market hog inventory, at 65.4 million head, was up 4 percent from last year, and up slightly from last quarter.

The September-November 2016 pig crop, at 32.3 million head, was up 5 percent from 2015. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 3.04 million head, up 4 percent from 2015. The sows farrowed during this quarter represented 51 percent of the breeding herd. The average pigs saved per litter was a record high 10.63 for the September-November period, compared to 10.53 last year. Pigs saved per litter by size of operation ranged from 8.20 for operations with 1-99 hogs and pigs to 10.70 for operations with more than 5,000 hogs.

Click to find the full USDA Report.

http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/current/HogsPigs/HogsPigs-12-23-2016.pdf

Video: Spring Planting Prep Just Got Serious… We NEED This!

Getting closer to planting season means one thing… it’s time to get EVERYTHING ready.

Today didn’t go exactly as planned—we thought we’d be hauling potatoes again, but instead we spent the day digging equipment out of the cellar, hooking up the grain drill, and getting tractors ready to roll. With wheat planting just around the corner, every piece of equipment matters.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a normal day without a few problems… dead batteries, hydraulic issues, and a truck tire that absolutely refused to cooperate. We tried everything—jump packs, bead bazooka, ratchet straps… and eventually had to bring out the “big guns” just to get things moving again.

But that’s farm life—adapt, fix, and keep moving forward.

We’re getting close to go-time. Wheat seed is coming soon, and planting season is right around the corner