As of March 1, there were 71.0 million hogs and pigs on U.S. farms, up 4 percent from March 2016, but down 1 percent from December 1, 2016, according to the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).
Other key findings in the report were:
- Of the 71.0 million hogs and pigs, 64.9 million were market hogs, while 6.07 million were kept for breeding.
- Between December 2016 and February 2017, 31.4 million pigs were weaned on U.S. farms, up 4 percent from the same time period one year earlier.
- From December 2016 through February 2017, U.S. hog and pig producers weaned an average of 10.43 pigs per litter.
- U.S. hog producers intend to have 3.01 million sows farrow between March and May 2017, and 3.05 million sows farrow between June and August 2017.
- Iowa hog producers accounted for the largest inventory among the states, at 21.8 million head.
North Carolina and Minnesota had the second and third largest inventories with 9.20 million and 8.30 million head, respectively.
To obtain an accurate measurement of the U.S. swine industry, NASS surveyed over 7,500 operators across the nation during the first half of March. Data were collected by mail, telephone and through face-to-face interviews. All surveyed producers were asked to report their hog and pig inventories as of March 1, 2017.
The Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report and all other NASS reports are available online at www.nass.usda.gov.
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