MARKETING OF SOWS HAS BEEN BEAYY DUEING THE SUMT-EE MONTHS 



Packing sows by weight constituted a larger proportion of the total hog purchases 

 of packers and shippers at seven important livestock markets for the months of July 

 through October than a year ago (see chart below). The number marketed this summer, 

 June through August, is about half again as large a,s last year. Unanswered questions 

 are: How much did the increased marketing of sows reduce the number of 19^5 fall pigs 

 farrowed, and what will be the effect on the 19^^^ spring pig crop? 



Because the increase in the slaughter of sows from June through August 19^3 over 

 the same period in 19^2 was relatively greater than the increase in farrowings of 19^3 

 spring pigs over the 19^2 crop, the Bujreau of Agricultural Economics has suggested 

 that the earlier estimate of 55 million head for the 19^5 fall pig crop may be toe 

 high. Also, there was a 2? percent increase in receipts of hogs at these seven markets 

 from May through September compared with a 22 percent increase in the 19^2 fall pig 

 crop over the previous year. However, some of the increased marketing of sows this 

 past summer may have been due to replacement of older sows by gilts. 



Short feed supplies have played an important role in the heavy marketing of sows, 

 and any immediate reduction in hog numbers is not likely to be uniform over the coun- 

 try. Data on hog receipts at the seven markets reveal that the relative increase in 

 packer sow slaughter compared with last year has been much greater at East St. Louis, 

 Kansas City, and Indianapolis, located in areas where feed crops are short, than at 

 Omaha and Sioux City, Iowa, where a record com crop was made, 



PURCHASES OF PACKING SOWS BY PACKERS AND SHIPPERS AT SEVEN MARKETS 

 AS PERCENT OF TOTAL PURCHASES, BY VEEKS, 19iH, 19^2, and 19if3 



Percent 

 i^O 



50 



,20[ 



10 







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{ 



/ -A y 

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t I t I I I t I ! I I I I I I I I I I t I I I i I I I ' I I I I ! r I I I { I i I 1 I I : ■ I ! I I 



Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. 



L. F. Stice 



