Its was whole lot easier to consolidate the hog herd than it would be to consolidate the cow herd.

Unless you think the packers are going to calve millions upon millions of cows in dry lots I'd say the chances of the packers owning the cattle industry from birth to meat case is pretty slim.

When the hog herd got taken over by the packers there was major losses in the Farrow-Finish hog industry.  

Right NOW there is huge profit in the cattle industry, its just all going to the guys with the calves because there is more feedlot space than feeders.    Its happening in the hog industry right now too, the profit is being bid into the pigs and there are empty buildings out there.

It happened in the grains already, the profit got bid into the land.

Bottom line is the profit always gets bid into the limiting resource.   Whether that be a calf, pig, acre or the farmer/investor that wants to own the calf, pig or acre.   

Someday it will swing the other way, there will be more calves, pigs, acres than people that want them.