July 28, 2009
US sow herd needs more reductions
Pork industry experts from the University of Missouri said that more cuts in the US' sow herd are needed to solve the current problems in the industry.
Professor Em Glenn Grimes and Professor Ron Plain said that "two pork producers have announced a reduction of 47,000 sows over the next several weeks. Smithfield says they will sell 27,000 sows that are in the Texas Panhandle. Tyson is liquidating 20,000 sows from Arkansas and Missouri."
On top of that, "an additional 7-10 percent" from the June level is necessary, as production growth over the last years was 2-3 percent. These 47,000 sows amount to 0.78 percent of the current breeding herd, they said in their online outlook.
It is difficult to reduce the sow herd with the high investment per sow most producers have and the hog enterprise as important is it is in most operations, they added.
