USDA will release its quarterly Hogs and Pigs report tomorrow. Pre-report estimates are that the total inventory as of 1 December will come in at 99 percent of 2019, which would imply 76.5 million head. The most interesting aspect of the report will be the number of hogs and pigs by weight category. COVID disruptions, like plant idling in the spring, and reconfigurations since, created a backlog of slaughter hogs, leading to some depopulating (which is eligible for compensation per yesterday’s COVID relief package) and fluctuations in slaughter weights.
Last week’s average slaughter weight was 294 pounds; the average for 2019 was 285 pounds. The spread widened in May with the plant shutdowns and by July started t...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
The big news in the cattle markets yesterday was Tyson Foods’ move to close two more beef plants. One of them, the Joslin, Illinois, plant was shuttered immediately after the announcement. The other, in Eagle Mountain, Utah, is a case-ready plant that does not slaughter cattle. Tyson also...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
