Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 3/25/16


USDA reported the United States inventory of all hogs and pigs on March 1 was 67.6 million head, up slightly from March 1, 2015, but down 1 percent from Dec. 1, 2015.

Breeding inventory, at 5.98 million head, was down slightly from last year, and down slightly from the previous quarter.
Market hog inventory, at 61.7 million head, was up slightly from last year, but down 1 percent from last quarter.

The quarterly Hogs and Pigs report estimates were in line with analysts’ pre-report forecasts, according to a survey of eight analysts conducted by Urner Barry. 

Pig crop
The December 2015-February 2016 pig crop, at 29.6 million head, was down slightly from 2015. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 2.87 million head, down 1 percent from 2015.

The sows farrowed during this quarter represented 48 percent of the breeding herd.

The average pigs saved per litter were a record high 10.30 for the December-February period, compared to 10.23 last year.
Pigs saved per litter by size of operation ranged from 8.00 for operations with 1-99 hogs and pigs to 10.40 for operations with more than 5,000 hogs and pigs.

Livestock economists Scott Brown, University of Missouri, and Lee Shulz, Iowa State University, noted on a conference call that USDA’s revision to the June-August pig crop, an increase of 755,000, the third consecutive quarterly revision the agency has made, suggests more hogs than expected.

The bump, a possible record for that period, could mean larger supplies showing up in the fourth quarter of 2016, the analysts said. “It’s something to watch as we move forward,” Brown said.

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