Latest News From HOGS

Rising wholesale beef prices and declining packing plant utilization are two indicators to watch as the 2023 cattle markets unfold.

After easing China’s COVID restrictions and a wave of COVID moved through its residents, Chinese consumers are quickly returning with an excess of cash in hand, the U.S. Meat Export Federation reports.

Imagine your favorite cured meat like beef jerky, pepperoni or bacon without any added sodium nitrite from any source currently necessary for color and shelf life. Wes Osburn, Ph.D., is doing exactly that.

Denmark should aim to reduce beef and dairy production by levying an emissions tax on farming of $108 per metric ton in order to reach its ambitious climate targets, the government's independent advisor says.

An Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, owned by The Kraft Heinz Company, recently fell victim to thieves in Las Vegas who stole the iconic, 27-foot-long hot dog on wheels’ catalytic converter—then PETA steps in.

“There are so many legislators in policy-making that are unaware of the issues in rural veterinary medicine and rural agriculture today,” says Dr. Jody Kull, owner of Valley Mobile Veterinary Service, Danville, Pa. 

Cattle and hog harvest rates were lower last week with higher cash prices paid to farmers and feeders. Margins for both beef and pork packers are trending lower.

Marking 2022 as the busiest fiscal year ever, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agriculture specialists intercepted a total of 1.2 million lbs. of prohibited products at America’s largest seaport complex.

What will the next decade hold for your farm? What factors should you use to weigh investments or crop planning?  Here are five trends and data sets to ponder from USDA's latest Agricultural Baseline Projections.

Beginning June 11, 2023, over-the-counter livestock antibiotics will require a veterinary prescription. Producers are encouraged to establish a veterinarian-client-patient relationship now.

Records were smashed for a second consecutive year at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo Jr. Sale of Champions. Since the 2020 auction, the Jr. Sale of Champions revenues have increased by more than 35%.

EPA is proposing changes to rodenticides that would result in canceling products and uses, adding more requirements to labels, and reclassifying some products to restricted use pesticides. Here's what you need to know.

Beef exports set records for both volume and value in 2022, while pork export value finished with the third-largest year on record.

Cattle prices moved higher last week but cattle feeding margins remain modest. The supply-demand fundamentals are trending in favor of cattle feeders.

Conagra Brands, Inc., of Fort Madison, Iowa, is recalling approximately 2.6 million pounds of canned meat and poultry products due to a packaging defect that may cause products to become contaminated.

Two-thirds of consumers say transparency in animal protein is extremely or very important, says Merck Animal Health, as part of the company’s results in its first consumer transparency research study.

Rising production costs and steady to weaker cash prices trimmed cattle feeding margins to near breakeven levels. Pork producer margins remain solidly in the red.

A coalition of public health advocacy groups and online activists have filed a lawsuit against the FDA and its Center for Veterinary Medicine, challenging the decision to keep important antibiotics in animal ag.

After an incident in November that found Tyson Foods Chief Financial Officer intoxicated in a stranger’s home, John R. Tyson has pleaded guilty—agreeing to pay the fines on two misdemeanor charges.

Combining data from 142 countries and over 28,000 feed mills, Alltech recently shared its 2023 Alltech Agri-Food Outlook with global feed production survey data.

Average cattle feeding margins were near steady last week despite weaker cash prices. Pork producer margins slipped further into the red as lean carcass prices dropped more than 3% for the week.

Discussing what he calls the “farmer versus foodie conundrum,” Ray Starling, author and attorney, is set to headline the Animal Agriculture Alliance’s 2023 Stakeholders Summit in Arlington, Va. 

Providing purpose both on and off the farm, farm and ranch dogs earn top honors, selected from over 100 contestants across the nation, in the annual Farm Bureau contest.

Under the rule, APHIS would require tags that are both visually and electronically readable for interstate movement of cattle and bison six months after a final rule is published in the Federal Register.

Cattle feeding margins narrowed significantly last week while pork producer margins remain mired in red ink the first weeks of the new year.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced $40 million in funding to help complete Phase 2 of Iowa State University’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Here's why it matters to all of animal agriculture.

Faith in the inherent safety of plant-based products is misplaced, says scientists with the Agricultural Research Service. Here's why.

Learn more about USDA's Value Added Producer Grant during a free webinar hosted by ChopLocal and Stewards Unlimited. Learn more about grant requirements and discover tips on writing applications.

A truck and trailer with two show pigs has been found Tuesday morning after they were stolen sometime between 8 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday from a hotel parking lot in Denver, Colo. 

The International Consortium for Antimicrobial Stewardship in Agriculture (ICASA) has awarded nine grants to develop management strategies that improve judicious antibiotic use in beef cattle and swine.

Farm Bureau hosted Secretary Vilsack at its annual convention in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where he announced the details of ERP Phase 2 and PARP, U.S.-made fertilizer and new meat and poultry processing facility plans.

Cattle feeders are finding modest profits on market-ready cattle early in the New Year, but replacement feeder cattle prices are driving projected breakevens to eight-year highs.

Going on the fifth year of litigation, In re Pork Antitrust Litigation becomes the consolidation of 27 cases involving 146 parties in price-fixing allegations.

Impossible Foods has hired its first Chief Demand Officer.

U.S. pork exports saw continued growth in November, posting the largest volume and value numbers of 2022. Despite a November slowdown, beef export value sets records in key markets. Here's a look at what's happening.

The Biden administration is awarding an additional $9.6 million in grants and loans to expand meat processing across the country, it announced on Thursday as the government tries to diversify the industry.

“For the next two years, I am intensely focused on… leading the passage of the next five-year Farm Bill, which determines our nation’s food and agriculture policies," says Sen. Stabenow.

U.S. pork and beef export markets may have unique opportunties in 2023, capitalizing on the competetive opportunity for U.S. pork exports in key markets and diversifying the portfolio of U.S. beef products.

Matt and Lisa Moreland hoped at least one of their sons would return home to farm after college. What they didn’t anticipate? All three sons wanted to come back. Here are four things the family learned in the process.

Spiking wholesale beef prices the week before Christmas helped lift packer margins into the black while increasing cattle feeding margins.

To potentially prevent or limit the next zoonotic disease outbreak, USDA scientists are developing new tests and tools to identify and track the COVID virus and its variants in wild and domestic animals.

There is no time like the start of a new year to take a pulse on your company’s compensation and HR practices to see if they are in line with the outlook and trends for 2023. Here are five things to consider.

Packer margins remain in the red even as wholesale beef prices rallied $9 per cwt. and cash cattle prices were near steady.

Iowa State University students are using cutting-edge 3D anatomy visualization to see livestock in a new light.

Families facing hunger receive 200,000 meals through Feeding America, as part of a donation by the North American Meat Institute (NAMI), the Protein PACT and its sponsors.

A powerful holiday-week storm will unfold across the central U.S. from Thursday into Friday and unleash heavy snow and strong winds. Is your farm ready for the storm?

While optimism for U.S. red meat exports to China builds in the long-term, bumpy months may be ahead in the short term.

Consider what passersby think when they see your headquarters or machinery on the highway. Do you want them to draw their own conclusions, or do you want to be the one telling the story?

This year, more than ever, requires you to spend time with your tax adviser to pin down the right amount of taxable income to report. Good luck.  

Domestic sales and distribution of medically important antimicrobial drugs approved for use in food-producing animals decreased by less than 1% between 2020-21. Compared to 2015 (peak year), 2021 sales decreased 38%.