USDA released its Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report for 1 June today. There were 73.7 million head, which was down slightly from 1 June 2025, as well as from 1 March 2026. The hog herd sits at the same level it was on 1 September 2025 and is the lowest for June since 2023.
From 2016, after the recovery of the hog herd from porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv), the herd grew an average of 1.3 percent from March to June. Since the recovery from COVID-19 in 2021 through 2026, the herd has contracted from March to June by an average of 0.6 percent. Most of the gain in herd size has come from the September and December quarterly reports.
Comparing the report to the analysts’ pre-report expectations shows some gaps. Market pigs were expec...
What You Need to Know Today: Headlines emerging from negotiations between President Trump and President Xi were relatively limited, with a more substantive announcement expected Monday. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer indicated that additional details related to agricultural trade cou...
The heat of summer is now transitioning into more moderate temperatures, and the next two months have the busiest marketing periods of the year for replacement cattle. Weather always influences the replacement cattle market, and the primary grain belt in the Southern Plains, where many cattle a...
Key Takeaways: Diesel accounts for about 64 percent of U.S. farm fuel spending. For farmers, the pressing question is what a higher price adds to each field operation. Iowa farm diesel averaged $5.50/gallon in September, compared with the $2.89/gallon Iowa State assumed for its February machin...
