Profit margins for pork producers declined $5 per head the last week of May, leaving margins at $89 per head. Margins are down $16 per head from a month ago when profits were at their peak of $105, according to the Sterling Pork Profit Tracker. Last week’s margins are $135 per head better than a year ago when losses totaled $46 per head.
A year ago some market-ready hogs had no final home and their value was near zero. Last week marked the 16th consecutive week with positive margins. The Pork Profit Tracker is calculated by Sterling Marketing Inc., Vale, Ore.
Lean carcass prices averaged $114.17 last week, $3.04 per cwt. lower than the previous week, and $2.87 lower than a month ago. The quoted carcass price from a year ago was $40.64 per cwt.
Pork packers saw average profits of $14 per hog last week, a dramatic improvement from the $7 per head losses the week before. A year ago pork packers made $96 per hog.
Pork packer capacity utilization was estimated at 84.6% compared to 70.3% a year ago. Estimated market hog slaughter last week was 2,313,794 head.
Sterling Marketing president John Nalivka projects annual cash profit margins for hogs at $41 for 2021, and packer profits at $13 per head.
