There was some life in the U.S. hog market last week with October Lean Hog Futures gaining $5.71. Pork carcass cut-outs closed Friday at $78.53, higher than its been for a while. Last Friday Iowa-Minnesota hog price averaged 75.01¢ lb. With August lean hog futures at 83.875¢ Friday the cash hog market needs to get some giddy up real soon. If we hit 83-84¢ it will do a lot for the financial where withal and attitude of producers.
Packers have next to no Gross Margin (i.e. Cut-outs $78.53 – Iowa – Minnesota 75.01). The new and larger packer capacity has eroded margins. We expect Packers hope increased, fall hog marketing’s will help gross margins.
NPPC – GENE EDITING
The National Pork Producers Council has recently launched a new campaign to broaden awareness and understanding of gene editing promises in swine genetics. The NPPC is all in for pushing gene editing. They don’t want the safeguard of the U.S. Federal Drug Administration to continue to have oversight but instead the USDA.
- In Europe Gene Editing will be by law Genetic Modified Organisms (GMO) and subject to all those rules
- The first Gene Edited type pig was developed at the University of Guelph (Canada) twenty years ago. It was called Enviropig. The pig population was maintained for over twenty years. No packer would sell the meat. None were ever eaten. The herd has been destroyed. Technology worked but was no market.
- We asked a Packer a week ago if they would want to use Gene Edited Pigs – answer “Hell no”
- Vice President McDonalds at NPIC 2018 we paraphrase “Don’t expect us to explain GMO – Gene Editing”. When the world’s largest restaurant chain gives the warning, good idea to pay attention. 14,000 restaurants worldwide.
Plant based meat is here, our reply is GMO-Gene Edited Pork? That’s not taking the natural high ground. ABF free Pork, Gap Pork, Natural Pork – trendlines are away from technical farming’s but somehow do we think we can grow demand with GMO Pork?
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