November 18, 2008
US lowers pork output expectations
The USDA has lowered its pork production forecast for the fourth quarter, and for next year due to a variety of factors.
Pork production this year is expected to decrease 80 million pounds to nearly 6.21 billion pounds, due to lower-than-expected hog slaughter in October. That will bring the total output this year up less than 1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007.
Fourth-quarter prices for live equivalent 51-52 percent lean hogs are expected to average US$41-43per cwt, up 6 percent from last year.
The USDA also lowered its forecast for 2009 pork production to 23.1 million pounds, down 6 percent from this year due to expectations that US imports of Canadian live hogs will be nearly 21-percent lower from 2008.
US imported nearly 744,000 head of live swine in September, down 7.2 percent on-year. Imports during the third quarter fell 10.7 percent to 2.2 million head.
