Hogs - General
As cash cattle prices have been on an upward trajectory in 2023, packer margins have correspondingly moved lower. Sterling Marketing’s weekly estimates are printing packer margins red for the first time in six years.
Average cattle feeding margins increased last week as negotiated cash prices set new record highs.
Cash cattle and wholesale beef prices moved higher last week, increasing profit margins for both cattle feeders and beef packers. Pork producers saw modest per head losses.
Cattle feeders have experienced their best month in years with prices reaching record levels. Hog producers, however, are struggling to keep margins out of the red.
Rising wholesale beef prices and declining packing plant utilization are two indicators to watch as the 2023 cattle markets unfold.
Cattle and hog harvest rates were lower last week with higher cash prices paid to farmers and feeders. Margins for both beef and pork packers are trending lower.
Cattle feeders saw average profits of more than $300 per head last week while pork producers found average losses of about $13 per head.
Grilling season set to kick off as both packers and cattle feeders operating with profitable margins. Pork producers continue the struggle to reach profitability.
Packers have navigated through the tightest supplies of the season while maintaining profitability. Now, supplies are anticipated to increase seasonally which could swing more leverage in their favor.
Cash cattle prices declined last week for the first time in a month, but wholesale prices moved higher for the fifth consecutive week. Prices for yearling feeder cattle placed on feed topped $200 per cwt.
If a seasonal price decline develops as anticipated, this year’s starting point for cattle feeders is the best in a decade. Pork producers notch their second week of modest profits.
Cattle feeders saw their margins shrink $70 per head last week as a modest increase in market-ready supplies led packers to sharply cut their negotiated purchases.
Cattle feeders sold more cattle last week than any week this year and at the highest price in history. Pork producers saw modest profits.
Cattle feeders experience largest average profits in seven years as packer margins dip into the red.
Profit margins for cattle feeders and packers continue pacing in opposite directions as shrinking supplies of market-ready cattle drive negotiated cash prices higher.
Wholesale beef prices continue to support packer margins even as negotiated cash cattle trade well-above the five-year average. Pork producers enjoy a market rally that has lifted margins out of the red.
“Pork producers need the freedom to operate without worrying about excessive government regulation tripping them up, and that’s exactly what this bill will do,” says Rep. Zach Nunn (R-Iowa).
Bridging the gap between the youth show ring experience and production ag is crucial for creating a pipeline of skilled and knowledgeable individuals who can contribute to the ag industry, says Rebecca Keel Stack.
Two new board members began their service with SHIC, including Joseph Dykhuis, a Michigan pork producer representing the NPPC on the SHIC Board, and Pete Thomas, DVM, with Iowa Select Farms, in an at-large position.
As recent as March 20, we had $15-per-head profits staring at us for the next 12 months in the futures markets. As it has turned out, this is one of the largest and quickest deterioration in markets I’ve experienced.
Following the release of the Hogs and Pigs inventory report in June, Lee Schulz, livestock marketing specialist with Iowa State University Extension, joined AgriTalk to discuss his initial thoughts on the data.
While the risk of malaria infection remains low, the CDC says Anopheles mosquito vectors, found throughout many regions of the country, are capable of transmitting malaria if they feed on a malaria-infected person.
Producer farrowing intentions revealed in Thursday’s quarterly hogs and pigs report show high costs and negative margins are weighing on pork producers.
The National Pork Board recently announced a new five-year effort to address consumer questions related to the pork industry and strengthen consumers’ confidence in choosing pork for their plate.
An adequate labor force will be the biggest challenge facing ag for the foreseeable future. We need to instill the things into youth we have learned from previous generations, but we can’t be the “grumpy old man.”
Iowa State University’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VDL) is set to revolutionize molecular diagnostic testing with the introduction of a cutting-edge machine—the “SmartChip.”
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With the Fourth of July holiday weekend nearing and the upcoming Hogs and Pigs inventory report, Rabobank shares key insights to the hog and pork markets for the remainder of 2023 and into next year.
The Prop 12 implementation modification and conflicting media reports have raised confusion among producers who want to know, “What’s in it for me?” NPPC Chief Legal Strategist Michael Formica sets the record straight.