366 



Types and Market Classes of Live Stock 



(2) choice, (3) good, (4) medium, and (5) common. Not all of these 

 grades may be found in some of the classes. For example, light hogs 

 and pigs would not grade higher than choice, and packing hogs would 

 not grade higher than good. As will be shown later, there is very 

 little spread in price within each market class of hogs; in fact there is 

 so little spread in price that there is no necessity for grading market 

 hogs. For that reason no mention is made of the grades except in 

 this paragraph. Grades are of very little or no practical importance 

 in the hog market. ^ 



Prime Heavy Hogs 



These are heavy, finished hogs of good quality, usually barrows, 

 which weigh over 300 pounds. In the early days of the packing 



Fig. 134. -Trime heavy hogs. 



industry a premium was paid for hogs of this class because they were 

 in special demand for the manufacture of clear ^ and mess pork. Later, 

 when the trade in fresh pork and bacon was developed and when smaller 

 hams and shoulders came into demand, prime heavy hogs no longer 

 commanded a premium. For a number of years past they have sold 

 at lower prices than butcher and light hogs. Very few are received at 

 the markets because they sell at lower prices than younger and lighter- 

 weight hogs, cost more to produce per cwt., and are consequently less 

 profitable to the producer. They yield a heavy loin carcass (described 

 in Chapter XXIV) and such carcasses are frequently made into the 

 same products as packing hog carcasses. Prime heavy hogs sell at 

 about the same price as the best packing hogs of the same weight. 



iFor definitions of class and grade, see page 119. 

 2 Cured sides from which the ribs were removed. 



