And it’s going to last into next year, said Lee Schulz,, livestock economist at Iowa State Unviersity.
“What we’re experiencing currently in 2023 and into 2024 is [one] of the worst stretches ever in hog production, as we look back to 1974,” he said.
He expects losses this year will average $30 per hog and next year $16.
The best they can hope for this year, with losses at one point having reached $58 per head, is a loss of $2 per head over the summer, he said.
He was speaking in July.
Helping prop up the industry for now are strong exports and similar struggles in competing animal proteins.
Meanwhile, continuously improving production efficiencies and hog health lay a foundation for a rebound when the time comes.
