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Packers Hold Steady

2013-06-15 21:33:00| National Hog Farmer

By Steve Meyer, Paragon Economics Inc., Adel, IA Moderate growth in sow herd, average litter size would test weekly limits. One year ago, it appeared that packing capacity would become a real issue in the fall of 2013. The concern was well-founded, as producers were expanding the breeding herd by roughly 1% and average litter size was growing at a rate of about 2% per year. The combination suggested that U.S. hog slaughter could grow by more than 3%, year on year, by late 2013. With hog slaughter already headed toward a new quarterly record of 30.433 million head in fourth-quarter 2013, the prospect of pushing 3% more hogs through the current packing sector looked daunting. Then the worst drought in 50 years came knocking. Plans to grow the breeding herd and improve litter size slowed. Slaughter levels in fourth-quarter 2013 will likely be lower than last year. But questions about packer capacity loom. read more

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