812. =REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE. 
PORK PACKING. 
The following statistics have been compiled from the annual reports 
of the Cincinnati Price Current. The“ packing year” consists of a‘ sum- 
mer season” from March 1 to November 1, and of a winter season from 
November 1 to Mareh 1. Summer packing has risen to importance dur- 
ing the last few years, and presents some points of advantage over winter 
packing. In warm weather feed can be utilized to greater advantage 
in fattening hogs. The scarcity of ice during the last summer season 
somewhat restricted operations, but every year better provision is being 
made to meet this difticulty. The great pork region of our country is 
IN THE WEST. 
SUMMER PACKING.—The summer-packing season of 1878 opened with 
an increased supply of hogs at depressed prices, the general average 
cost being at least 50 cents per cental below the average of the previous 
winter season. The numbers packed, weight per head, and the yield of 
lard during the last three summer seasons, were as follows: 
Average Average 
Season. Numbers. Ee eorente net weight ares re yield of lard 
CDM Cle Hsperiheads i) co oes per head. 
| Pounds. Pounds. Pounds. Pounds. 
STG jamin a ale ae ee awn steisiaieislelos ainis ciel 2, 357, 866 | 424, 879, 300 184. 10 70, 040, 980 30. 35 
= (Cy) PA es ee ee Lea | 2,543,120 | 484, 553, 471 190.57 | 85, 364,176 33.56 
SiS casemate cc ete wae aleeenecer er siaee 3, 378, 044 | 631, 807, 730 187.03 | 113, 949, 500 33. 73 
The numbers packed at the six leading cities, Chicago, Cincinnati, 
Saint Louis, Milwaukee, Louisville, and Indianapolis, together with 
other prominent points, during the last three years, were as follows: 
Packing points. 1876. 1877. 1878. 
Ohicagon tos. Meneeeee Se eee ke ad tees gD Ma epee Ihe Ie eee ee, 1,315,402 | 1,508,026 | 2, 017, 841 
Cire raat So ee ee Ee AE ROL PER ELE I A ESTE SPE Ha EN 121, 173 134, 416 154, 517 
Saint Mowis= 525 -/ao ee me sissies aeinm elem spaie = Lieeloan a cine eee se 131, 158 148, 277 142, 000 
Milwaukee eos. sce. es sot sesisees sae cece cm astceesese cee ceeeenecne| 60, 827 54, 785 107, 053 
ous valle et ie see ee ete ee Sa Bea el eee is aioe a kistela ates 9, 500 19, 800 25, 000 
Indianapolis sce ses sates Soa eee eater EN taiuhacde Seb wach 283, 621 204, 264 * 312, 224 
Total foribhersix CULES ese wa aajeeiecscisia ce seealeeerees aac 1, 921,681 | 2, 069, 568 2, 758, 635 
MoyelandiOnio Bes see ee ee ee ee ae eas ean Oe es 187, 392 146, 048 229, 385 
WeaartRapidS Towa seme comme meee ee eee eee ee oes eee eee cee eet 105, 580 110, 130 195, 200 
Kansas! City Nosse ec soos sae eam oe cee eens eee en eeee ees 66, 754 17, 821 99, 517 
DesiMomes Wo waeeess sess ee cece ee ee eee oon eee nee ane ee 28, 609 34, 503 12, 027 
AD Yeti oy i apa UY) ae ae a A a re eae eee eee ee ee oS 24, 000 34, 028 30, 302 
OCHO OMTS He sce cet oe eee eR See eae ne eee ee ee cee 23, 850 71, 022 52, 978 
Granditotall aot ash teem eaaccosccst te cone sae aneneneeeaes 2,357, 866 | 2, 543, 120 8, 878, 044 
These six cities are the great centers of winter operations, packing 
over 70 per cent. of the winter hogs of the West. Their proportion of 
the summer packing is still greater—over 81 per cent. 
WINTER PACKING.—The great bulk of the pork packing of the West, 
as well as of other parts of the country, is done during the four months 
of the “winter season,” or from November, to March inclusive. The 
operations of the last season show an increase of over 13 per cent. over 
the enormous aggregates of the winter previous. This enlargement, in 
the face of immense losses sustained by the packing interest as the re- 
sult of former seasons, could only have been secured by a marked reduc- 
tion in prices. At the opening of the season it had become evident that 
the country was teeming with hogs fit for packing. The enormous 
corn crops of the last four years had made hog-feed abundant and cheap. 
The diffusion of improved breeds had also greatly reduced the time 
