United States Hog Inventory Down 2 Percent

United States inventory of all hogs and pigs on June 1, 2021 was 75.7 million head. This was down 2 percent from June 1, 2020, but up 1 percent from March 1, 2021.  

Breeding inventory, at 6.23 million head, was down 2 percent from last year, but up slightly from the previous quarter.

Market hog inventory, at 69.4 million head, was down 2 percent from last year, but up 1 percent from last quarter.

The March-May 2021 pig crop, at 33.6 million head, was down 3 percent from 2020. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 3.07 million head, down 3 percent from 2020. The sows farrowed during this quarter represented 49 percent of the breeding herd. The average pigs saved per litter was 10.95 for the March-May period, compared to 11.00 last year.

United States hog producers intend to have 3.11 million sows farrow during the June-August 2021 quarter, down 4 percent from the actual farrowings during the same period one year earlier, and down 5 percent from the same period two years earlier. Intended farrowings for September-November 2021, at 3.08 million sows, are down 2 percent from the same period one year earlier, and down 4 percent from the same period two years earlier.

The total number of hogs under contract owned by operations with over 5,000 head, but raised by contractees, accounted for 49 percent of the total United States hog inventory, unchanged from the previous year.