Winnipeg, April 25 – Western Canadian cash hog prices have been trending higher as supplies tighten and demand increases moving into the summer, two Prairie analysts say.
“A lot of that has to do with lower slaughter numbers, higher pork cutout values,” said Brad Marceniuk, livestock economist with Saskatchewan Agriculture.
Market ready hog numbers in the United States are falling as they normally do this time of year and pork exports are good, notably to China.
“It’s not a huge decrease, but the trend has been lower numbers here the last month or so,” Marceniuk said.
Higher pork cutout values are linked to summer demand, he added, which typically increases during barbeque season.
“A lot of it is demand factors that come into play at this time of year, demand for grilling-cuts,” said Tyler Fulton, director of risk management for Hams Marketing Services.
This year’s cash market is tracking the trends seen last year, he said, and expects prices to continue rising until about mid-July, when supplies are tightest and prices peak.
Hams Marketing Services pegs cash prices at about C$67.70 per cwt for the week ended April 23.
Prospects for low feed costs this summer look favourable, Fulton said.
“Generally, (corn and soybean) supplies are very, very high, and that means feed prices are quite depressed.”
Feed costs are contingent on weather conditions, Fulton said.
“But if we get another average, or above-average size crop, I think it would ensure that feed-costs would likely be stable, or drop even further.”
