World Perspectives
livestock

Pork Demand Clears Out Freezers of Inventory

USDA released its monthly Cold Storage report today. Pork in cold storage as of 31 December was 408.361 MMT, 97 percent of November and 70 percent of December 2019, led by drops in primal cuts virtually across the board. That is good news for hog producers given the disruptions of 2020 – the volume continued to move. Boneless loins inventories were at record highs for December, while bone-in hams were at a record low for December. Production of bone-in hams for the second half of the year was up given the effects of COVID on fabrication.

Pork production in 2020 was 102 percent of 2019, which was a good recovery after the spring plant shutdowns and the euthanization of pigs. The increase was driven by heavier weights; the average s...

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livestock

Livestock Industry Margins

Beef packer margins reversed sharply to -$17/head from $120/head the prior week, as rising fed cattle prices more than offset a modest decline in the Choice cutout. Fed cattle prices increased $12.92/cwt from the prior week while the cutout slipped $3.24/cwt, compressing gross margins and pushi...

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From WPI Consulting

Forecasting developments in production agriculture

On behalf of a private U.S. agricultural technology provider, WPI’s team generated an econometric model to forecast the movement of concentrated corn production north and west from the traditional U.S. Corn Belt. WPI’s model has subsequently provided quantitative support to a multi-million-dollar investment into short-season corn variety development. WPI’s methodology included a series of interviews with regional grain elevators and seed consultants. Emphasizing outreach and communication with stakeholders who possess intimate sectoral knowledge – on-the-ground insights – is a regular component of WPI’s methodologies, made possible by WPI’s ever-growing network of industry contacts.

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