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SW WI | I will give you my scenario. I am part of a feeder pig co op, take turns with other owners getting 35 lb pigs at our figured cost of production. As you might expect sometimes this is a savings vs open market price and sometimes it's more expensive. Up until the blown up pig prices of the last few years, the open market price would of been better. BUT, single source,known disease problems and remidies, known genetics and known steady price per rotation.
My wife and I own the pigs and care for them, no outside labor. We do our own washing and repairs, loading and grinding feed. Part of a marketing group that pools pigs for the packer to guarantee supply and kill space.
NO price protection, "contract" with packer is pretty one sided. Here is the legal speak boiled down into every day terms......we will kill your pigs, sometimes back you up so you don't hit a lean premium, and pay you whatever the hell we want.
I have used the board to try to manage prices before. Very frustrating, I think cattle producers are finding out about futures, if there is no real delivery on the product, a lot of games can be played with the paper. I also feel information about the supply and demand is not readily available to average farmers. An example is trying to track basis.I think the packers have a very good handle on supply coming in and product that they are moving. I can follow basis in the grains very easily, not much surprises me on the elevators where I sell to. Hogs? Wow thats like asking stevie wonder to be a NASCAR driver. I don't mean to be politically incorrect but that is the blind leading the blind. It is really just closely held information and that how people and packers that have it make some/more money. | |
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Long term hog outlook
