NASHVILLE, Tenn. (RFD-TV) — Hog prices are easing slightly with Western Cornbelt caracasses down from the previous week. Pork producer profits have narrowed to about $64 per head, but margins remain in the black, and packers continue to run near full capacity, with utilization around 97 percent. Even with lower cutout values and feed costs, analysts say demand for pork remains steady and supplies are strong.
The latest Hogs and Pigs Report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) caught some analysts off guard. Inventories came in lower than expected, signaling tighter supplies ahead, even as producers return to profitability this year.
“That gave us inventories as of September 1 and then helped us kind of project those numbers six months to a year ahead, as we kind of look at those slaughter supplies and kind of anticipate what those numbers are,’ said xxx. “And to summarize that report, you know, I would put it in the category of a bit of a shocker, because not only did we see numbers below a year ago, which was a little bit of a surprise, but compared to pre-report expectations, as there’s about seven analysts that were asked about, you know, what they expected the numbers to be, and USDA came in much lower than those numbers.”
That surprise has ripple effects across the market, with forecasts shifting as analysts weigh the latest numbers against producer demand.
As we start the new year, let’s take a look at some of the legislative items from 2023 affecting agriculture that will continue to play out in the political area for months to come.
January 02, 2024 12:00 PM
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Researchers out of the United Kingdom are using gene editing technology to help make High-Path Avian Flu less of a threat to poultry.
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When it comes to Kansas’ “Right to Farm” law, and property rights with respect to road ditch right-of-ways and the common law and trespassing and nuisance — how far can one go without infringing on others? RFD-TV’s Farm legal expert Roger McEowen details a recent opinion by the Kansas Court of Appeals in a case involving a hog farmer, which, he says, is perhaps the most egregious ag nuisance case that has ever gone to an appellate-level court in Kansas.
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Researchers at the Boyce Thompson Institute have constructed the perfect watermelon—returning “lost” genes from the domesticated fruit’s wild relatives that improve both taste and resilience during the growing process.
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Researchers at Florida Atlantic University’s
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