September 17, 2008

US hog slaughter soars, but exports could be declining

US hog slaughter sets a new record earlier this month, topping 2.3 million head for the first time in a September week, according to USDA statistics.

Hog slaughter in the fourth quarter is expected to be up about 2.5 percent from last year's fourth quarter when a record 30.4 million head were slaughtered, according to University of Missouri economists Glenn Grimes and Ron Plain.

Exports however, which at record volumes have largely consumed these larger kills, could be slowing.

While export data for August won't be available until October, Plain said his concern about exports is based on the large decline in pork cutout value over the past three weeks and the only explanation they could see for such a hit is a slow-down in exports.