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Previewing the USDA’s Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report

A livestock economist says breeding inventory is a number to watch in this week’s Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report. University of Missouri associate extension professor emeritus Scott Brown says the industry has been almost sideways.  “I’ve seen some estimates already that would suggest breeding inventories below year-ago levels,” he says. 

He tells Brownfield this week’s report will also provide some insight into where the industry is headed in the next six to nine months. “Productivity continues to push the overall pig crop to be still higher,” he says.  “But we’ll wait and see what we get out of out of that report.”

One pre-report survey projects the U.S. hog herd to expand and anticipates the largest September 1 inventory since 2020.

The report comes out Thursday at 3 pm Eastern/2 pm Central.