Record Pork Production for February

Mar 19, 2015

February 2015 contained 20 weekdays (including 1 holiday) and 4 Saturdays.

Commercial red meat production for the United States totaled 3.77 billion pounds in February, up 3 percent from the 3.65 billion pounds produced in February 2014.

Beef production, at 1.79 billion pounds, was slightly above the previous year. Cattle slaughter totaled 2.17 million head, down 3 percent from February 2014. The average live weight was up 25 pounds from the previous year, at 1,355 pounds.

Veal production totaled 6.4 million pounds, 21 percent below February a year ago. Calf slaughter totaled 36,700 head, down 30 percent from February 2014. The average live weight was up 26 pounds from last year, at 293 pounds.

Pork production totaled 1.96 billion pounds, up 6 percent from the previous year. Hog slaughter totaled 9.08 million head, up 5 percent from February 2014. The average live weight was up 2 pounds from the previous year, at 285 pounds.

Lamb and mutton production, at 12.3 million pounds, was up 6 percent from February 2014. Sheep slaughter totaled 164,700 head, 2 percent below last year. The average live weight was 141 pounds, up 3 pounds from February a
year ago.

January to February 2015 commercial red meat production was 7.9 billion pounds, down slightly from 2014. Accumulated beef production was down 4 percent from last year, veal was down 24 percent, pork was up 4 percent from last year, and lamb and mutton production was up 3 percent.

Source: USDA

Video: Swine Industry Advances: Biodigesters Lower Emissions and Increase Profits

Analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG emissions) in the Canadian swine sector found that CH4 emissions from manure were the largest contributor to the overall emissions, followed by emissions from energy use and crop production.

This innovative project, "Improving Swine Manure-Digestate Management Practices Towards Carbon Neutrality With Net Zero Emission Concepts," from Dr. Rajinikanth Rajagopal, under Swine Cluster 4, seeks to develop strategies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

While the management of manure can be very demanding and expensive for swine operations, it can also be viewed as an opportunity for GHG mitigation, as manure storage is an emission source built and managed by swine producers. Moreover, the majority of CH4 emissions from manure occur during a short period of time in the summer, which can potentially be mitigated with targeted intervention.

In tandem with understanding baseline emissions, Dr. Rajagopal's work focuses on evaluating emission mitigation options. Manure additives have the potential of reducing manure methane emissions. Additives can be deployed relatively quickly, enabling near-term emission reductions while biodigesters are being built. Furthermore, additives can be a long-term solution at farms where biogas is not feasible (e.g., when it’s too far from a central digester). Similarly, after biodigestion, additives can also be used to further reduce emissions from storage to minimize the carbon intensity of the bioenergy.