Benchmarking the Ontario Pig Industry · The report “Benchmarking the Ontario Pig Industry” was made possible due to the generous financial support of Ontario Pork through funding

Benchmarking the Ontario Pig Industry

Prepared for:

Prepared by:

Ken McEwan Lynn Marchand

University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus

January, 2007

Funding support for this project

This project is funded in part through contributions by Canada and the Province of Ontario under the Canada-Ontario Research and Development (CORD) Program. The Agricultural Adaptation Counciladministers the CORD Program on behalf of the province.

Acknowledgements The report “Benchmarking the Ontario Pig Industry” was made possible due to the generous financial support of Ontario Pork through funding from the Canada-Ontario Research Development (CORD) Program. Special thanks and appreciation are extended to the many swine producers that took the time to complete all or part of the survey instrument. Their participation and openness has greatly enhanced the accuracy of this study. Other individuals that deserve recognition and thanks are Amy Ferguson, Janet Boekhorst, Jenna Vanderveen, and Joanne Boekhorst for their tireless efforts in contacting producers and data entry. Special thanks also to Carolyn Lucio for her word processing talents and to Paul Luimes and Richard Armstrong for their technical expertise. Finally, appreciation is extended to any others who assisted with this project in some way.


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus i

Executive Summary This study was undertaken to benchmark Ontario’s pig production industry and study changes that have taken place since a similar study was undertaken in 1998/1999. A total of 2,199 people participated in the survey out of 2,539 contacted. This is a response rate of 86.6 percent and 82.2 percent of the respondents indicated that they had pigs at the time of the survey. There were 5.1% of the survey recipients that chose not to participate in the survey and another 8.3% who did not respond by mail or telephone despite several opportunities to do so. The survey form, a letter of explanation and a return envelope was mailed to each individual. Two reminder mailings were undertaken within the first month in order to encourage participation. Phone calls began one month after the initial mailing to those individuals who had not participated on their own. One last mailing was undertaken two months into the project to the individuals who had not responded through previous mail and telephone attempts. Results from the survey are discussed below and show that Ontario’s pig industry is continuing to change. There are fewer farms and they are becoming larger and more specialized over time. Farrow to finish is the most common production system in Ontario and more than one-third of all respondents were farmers older than 50 years of age. Sole proprietorships were the most common business structure (i.e. 43.4% of respondents) but family corporations have become more common with 23 percent of farms reporting this business structure, up from 15% of participants in the survey conducted in 1999. Inventory numbers provided by survey respondents represented just over 2.9 million pigs or 80% of the Statistics Canada July 1 inventory estimate. Participants indicated that they plan to sell about 1.4 million SEW piglets, 1 million weaner pigs, 5.1 million market hogs and 170,000 other pigs during 2006 for a total of about 7.7 million pigs. Although 74 percent of respondents plan to stay the same size during the next two years, 13 percent plan to increase, 3 percent plan to decrease and 10 percent plan to exit the industry. In terms of total farm sales, 11.3 percent of respondents reported that they had very small farms (i.e. less than $50,000 in total sales) and they accounted for less than 1 percent of the pig inventory. An indication that farm size is increasing is very large farms with more than $1 million in total sales represented 12.7 percent of respondents and 63 percent of the pig inventory in 2006 compared to 4.8 percent of respondents and 37 percent of inventory in 1999. Nearly 13 percent of respondents reported having more than $3 million in total farm assets in 2006. Over half of the respondents (i.e. 51.4%) reported that they had low farm debt levels and 12.3 percent said they had high debt. During the next 2 years about 80 percent of all participants plan to spend less than $25,000 on new capital investment. Almost one-quarter of respondents indicated that they have off-farm employment and 43 percent of those that have off-farm employment income reported that their pay is greater than $35,000 per year before tax and other deductions. The amount


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus ii

of personal income that comes from the swine enterprise varied widely from very little to most of their income. Specific factors that are influencing pig production in Ontario are discussed below. 1. Young vs Older Operators

A large part of Ontario’s pig industry is comprised of older farmers. In fact, 37 percent of the respondents reported that they were older than 50 years of age (older farmers) compared to the 8 percent that were younger than 31 (young farmers). 30 percent of young farmers have small businesses with less than $100,000 in total farm sales. In the next 2 years 20 percent of young farmers plan to increase the size of their swine business. Debt levels for these young farmers are evenly split between the three debt level categories of low, medium and high debt. As these young farmers grow and invest in their swine businesses they will assume more debt. Older farmers reported that about one-third of them have small farms but there is another 24.2 percent that have more than $500,000 in sales. As for the future, 15.9 percent will exit the business in the next 2 years while only 7.3 percent plan to increase the size of their swine business. Older farmers tend to have lower farm debt levels with 65.3 percent indicating low debt. These farmers have had the opportunity to pay down their debt.

2. Business Ownership

As the size of the business increases often so does the complexity of the business structure. Sole proprietors are still the most common business structure but the frequency of partnerships and corporations (both family and business) have increased since 1999. Sole proprietors tend to be small to medium size farm operations and 69.3 percent had total farm sales less than $250,000. Three quarters of sole proprietors plan to stay the same size during the next couple of years and 12.9 percent expect that they will exit the industry completely. Low debt levels are found on 59.5 percent of farms operated as sole proprietors. One half of business corporations are very large farms with sales in excess of $1 million. These farms are committed to the industry and 27 percent of them plan to increase the size of their swine enterprise in the next 2 years and 10.9 percent plan capital investments worth more than $250,000. Nearly 60 percent of business corporations have total farm assets worth more than $1.5 million and 66.3 percent have medium or high levels of debt.


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus iii

3. Farm Size Many differences exist between small farms (i.e. farms with less than $100,000 in total farm sales) and large farms (i.e. farms with greater than $500,000 in sales). Small farms are typically organized as sole proprietors with 65.2 percent having this structure and 23.7 percent are partnerships. Nearly three-quarters of small farms (i.e. 72.7%) indicated that they have low debt and this may be partly attributable to the older age of many respondents in this category. Some of these participants will be retiring in the near future and 16.3 percent of small farm respondents indicated that they will leave the industry in the next 2 years. There were 12.6 percent of small farms who reported that they plan to increase the size of their swine enterprise in the next 2 years. Small farm respondents are more likely to report that they have off-farm employment income with 36 percent reporting this to be the case. About half (i.e. 49.2%) of the small farm respondents reported that income from the swine enterprise made up less than 20 percent of their total personal income. More than half of the large farms were corporations (i.e. 48% family corporations, 13.1% business corporations) and large farms as a group are the most likely to invest in their swine businesses and increase in size in the next 2 years. 18 percent of large farms said they plan to increase in size and 20.9 percent plan to invest more than $100,000 in new capital. Three-quarters of the large farms have medium to high levels of debt but this will be necessary to carry larger inventories and finance the growth of their farms. Only 15.2% of respondents from large farms reported that they have off-farm employment income and 47 percent of participants indicated that more than 80 percent of their total personal income comes from the swine enterprise.

4. Off-farm Employment Income

There were 23.2 percent of all survey respondents who indicated that they have off-farm employment income. These respondents come from a wide range of farm sizes and the main decision makers are a wide variety of ages. Small farms (with less than $100,000 in sales) had a higher frequency of owners working off the farm with 36 percent reporting that this was the case. High salaries for off-farm employment were found on all sizes of farms, not just on small farms as might be expected.

The trend to fewer but larger farms is evident in Ontario’s pig industry. The proportion of small farms has decreased from 1996 to 2006 while the proportion of large farms has increased during this time frame. Large farms control a growing percentage of Ontario’s pig inventory. In the future these large farms will continue to invest in their businesses while small farms will leave the industry. Young farmers will not be sufficient in numbers to replace retiring farmers but they show enthusiasm and commitment for the industry and are more likely to grow their swine businesses.

♦♦♦


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus iv

Table of Contents Page # 1.0 Introduction.....................................................................................................1 2.0 Objectives, Methodology, and Study Limitations .......................................4 2.1 Objectives.................................................................................................4 2.2. Methodology.............................................................................................4 2.3 The Survey Questionnaire .......................................................................5 2.4 Response Rate ........................................................................................6 2.5 Study Limitations......................................................................................7 3.0 Results.............................................................................................................8 3.1 Section B - Demographics .......................................................................8 3.2 Section C - Inventory..............................................................................13 3.3 Section D - Financial ..............................................................................15 3.4 Section E - For Non-Owners of Pigs......................................................19 4.0 Assessment of Key Factors ........................................................................20 4.1 The Age Factor ......................................................................................20 4.2 Farm Size...............................................................................................22 4.3 Business Arrangement...........................................................................24 4.4 Debt........................................................................................................25 4.5 Off-Farm Employment............................................................................26 4.6 Comparison by Production System........................................................27 5.0 The Future of the Industry ...........................................................................29 5.1 Age of Decision Maker and Future Intentions........................................29 5.2 Farm Size and Future Plans ..................................................................29 5.3 Production System and Future Plans.....................................................30 5.4 Specialization and Future Plans.............................................................30 5.5 Farm Debt Level and Future Plans ........................................................31 5.6 Future Investment in the Industry...........................................................31 6.0 Concluding Remarks....................................................................................33 6.1 Young vs Older Operators .....................................................................34 6.2 Business Ownership ..............................................................................34 6.3 Farm Size...............................................................................................35 6.4 Off-farm Employment Income ................................................................35 6.5 Summary................................................................................................35


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus v

List of Figures Page # Figure 1.1 Producer Numbers by Hog Marketing Category Over Time ....................1 Figure 1.2 Annual Hog Sales by Marketing Category ...............................................2 Figure 1.3 Farms with Hogs and Hogs per Farm in the U.S. 1980-2003..................3 List of Tables Table 2.1 Overall Response Rate ............................................................................6 Table 3.1 Age of Main Decision Maker ....................................................................9 Table 3.2 Business Type..........................................................................................9 Table 3.3 Main Swine Production System .............................................................10 Table 3.4 Tillable Acres Owned .............................................................................10 Table 3.5 Total Acres Available for Manure Spreading .........................................11 Table 3.6 Main Source of Market Information........................................................12 Table 3.7 Percent of Total Feed Used in Home-grown Crops ...............................12 Table 3.8 Percent of Total Feed Purchased That is Complete Feed.....................13 Table 3.9 Inventory Levels .....................................................................................13 Table 3.10 Number of Pigs Sold in 2005 .................................................................14 Table 3.11 Number of Pigs to be Sold in 2006 ........................................................14 Table 3.12 Future Intentions ....................................................................................14 Table 3.13 Future Intentions Regarding Sow Numbers...........................................15 Table 3.14 Gross Farm Sales ..................................................................................15 Table 3.15 Percent of Farm Sales that are Swine Related......................................16 Table 3.16 Fair Market Value of Total Farm Assets.................................................16 Table 3.17 Percent of Farm Assets that are Swine Related ....................................17 Table 3.18 Farm Debt Level.....................................................................................17 Table 3.19 New Capital Investment .........................................................................18 Table 3.20 Percent of Personal Income from Swine Enterprise ..............................19 Table 3.21 Production Systems ...............................................................................19 Table 4.1 Age vs Total Farm Sales........................................................................20 Table 4.2 Age vs Number of Sows.........................................................................21 Table 4.3 Age vs Debt Level ..................................................................................21 Table 4.4 Farm Size vs Business Organization .....................................................22 Table 4.5 Farm Size vs Production System...........................................................22 Table 4.6 Farm Size vs Debt Level ........................................................................23 Table 4.7 Size vs Land and Nutrient Management................................................24 Table 4.8 Business Arrangement vs Sow Inventory ..............................................24 Table 4.9 Business Arrangement vs % Feed that is Home-Grown........................25 Table 4.10 Farm Debt Level vs Age of Decision Maker...........................................25 Table 4.11 Business Type vs Farm Debt Level .......................................................26 Table 4.12 Off-Farm Employment vs Total Farm Sales...........................................26 Table 4.13 Off-Farm Employment Income vs Farm Size.........................................26 Table 4.14 Off-Farm Employment Income vs Farm Debt ........................................27 Table 4.15 Production System by Key Variables.....................................................27 Table 4.16 Farrow to Finish and Finishing Farms by Size.......................................28 Table 5.1 Age of Decision Maker by Future Intentions ..........................................29


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus vi

List of Tables (cont’d) Table 5.2 Farm Size and Future Plans ..................................................................30 Table 5.3 Production System and Futures Plans...................................................30 Table 5.4 Specialization by Future Plans...............................................................31 Table 5.5 Farm Debt by Futures Plans ..................................................................31 List of Appendices Appendix A Survey Form and Letters.....................................................................37 Appendix B Summary of Results ............................................................................44


University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus 1

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Ontario’s swine industry has changed tremendously in the last 10 to 15 years from traditionally small diversified farms to larger more specialized farms. Producers have been continually striving to find technologies and systems that help them achieve efficiencies, increased production, and profitability. Over time the number of farms producing market hogs has decreased from about 18,000 in 1981 to only 3,300 in 2005 and Figure 1.1 shows the number of producers over time categorized by the number of hogs they market annually. This graph shows that the very small hog producers (i.e. those that market 1 to 50 hogs/year) have been decreasing in number while large producers marketing more than 3,000 hogs per year have been increasing in number. In 1981, of the approximately 18,000 hog producers, 49 percent marketed less than 51 hogs and less than one-half of one percent marketed greater than 3,000 hogs. By 2006, 15 percent sold less than 51 hogs and over 18 percent marketed more than 3,000 hogs. Figure 1.1 Producer Numbers by Hog Marketing Category Over Time

0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005

# of

Pro

duce

rs

1 to 50 hogs 51 to 500 hogs 501 to 3,000 hogs >3,000 HogsSource: Ontario Pork

Hog Marketing Category

Figure 1.2 uses the same hog marketing categories but shows the total number of hogs marketed by farms in these marketing categories. In 1981, the small hog farms represented 3.5 percent of the yearly marketings and by 2005 this group produced only 0.1% of total marketings. Large hog farms, however, grew from 8.6 percent of marketings in 1981 to 61.8 percent of marketings in 2005. Total marketings have grown from about 4 million in 1981 to 5.6 million in 2005 even though the number of producers has declined.



Figure 1.2 Annual Hog Sales by Marketing Category

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005

Millions

# of

Hog

s M

ktd

1-50 hogs 51-500 hogs 501-3000 hogs >3000 hogsSource: Ontario Pork

Hog Marketing Category

In 2006, the average Ontario pig producer is in their late 40’s and they operate a farrow to finish operation. They conduct business as a sole proprietor and own about 150 acres of land while having access to a total of about 200 acres for the purposes of manure application. About one-half of the total feed used by the swine enterprise is home-grown. The average farm has total sales of about $250,000 and approximately 60% of these sales are attributable to the swine business. Total farm assets have a fair market value in the $1.2 million range, 40% of these assets are swine related and the farm has a low to medium level of debt. The average producer plans to stay the same size in the next two years and very little, if any, capital investment is planned. For the average producer, about half of their total personal income comes from the swine enterprise. In the U.S., a similar trend of fewer and larger farms is also being experienced. Figure 1.3 shows the number of farms with hogs decreasing over time while the number of hogs per farm increases from about 100 in 1980 to slightly more than 800 hogs/farm in 2003.



Figure 1.3

Source: http://www.econ.iastate.edu/faculty/lawrence/PorkStat/hog-farmUS.pdf

In summary, the Ontario swine industry has been concentrating into few, larger farms that focus on pig production. While the average Ontario swine farm still remains relatively small (i.e. total sales of about $250,000), farms with marketings greater than 3,000 now account for about 62% of annual marketings. Similar trends have been experienced in the U.S..



2.0 OBJECTIVES, METHODOLOGY, AND STUDY LIMITATIONS

2.1 Objectives

The intent of this project was to contact all individuals that owned one or more pigs in Ontario at the time of the survey and to describe demographic, production, financial and future intentions of these people. More specifically, the objectives of the project were: 1) Develop a database of every producer that owns one or more pigs in the

province of Ontario. Key information to be captured would include producer demographics such as age, level of education, business structure, and confirm contact information. Other data to be gathered would encompass production type, pig inventory, age of facilities, future expansion or contraction plans, and etc..

2) Sort and analyse producer information to benchmark changes in

production type, farm size, marketing expertise and etc.. Identifying and monitoring these changes is important from a policy setting and issues management perspective.

3) Quantify present and future rates of change occurring in producer

numbers by farm size, geographic location, and business type. Determine producer profiles that might be able to supply a particular marketing opportunity.

2.2 Methodology Prior to the survey questionnaire being distributed, information regarding the project was disseminated through different media outlets in an effort to increase producer awareness. For example, radio interviews were given on various stations located throughout southwestern Ontario at the beginning of the project. As well, Ontario Pork included information about the survey on the Ontario Pork website and in media materials such as the Ontario Pork Newsflash (April) and Pork News (June). On June 1, 2006 packages were mailed out to 2,528 producers. The mailing list was provided by Ontario Pork. Each producer received a package containing a letter of explanation from Ontario Pork, a letter outlining what to do from Ridgetown College, a survey form and a reply envelope. Producers were asked to reply by June 23, 2006 and were informed that if they did not reply then they would be contacted by a representative from Ridgetown College via telephone. A copy of the letters can be found in Appendix A. On June 7, 2006 a second mailing took place. This mailing was identical to the first mailing except it contained a note that thanked producers for sending



in their completed surveys if they had already done so and reminded those producers who had not completed the survey to please do so. On June 19, 2006 a third mailing was undertaken. This mailing was sent to producers that had not already sent in a completed survey and contained only a letter urging producers to participate. This letter is also found in Appendix A. Phone calls began on July 5, 2006 to those producers that had not sent in a completed questionnaire. All efforts were made to contact those producers that had not responded to the survey on their own. On July 31, 2006 a letter was sent to the producers who had not responded to the survey on their own or through repeated phone call attempts. This letter can be found in Appendix A. Telephone calls were completed by August 15. Completed surveys that continued to arrive in the mail until September 15 were included in the analysis.

2.3 The Survey Questionnaire

The survey was designed to provide a detailed picture of Ontario’s pork production industry with respect to producer demographics, production system characteristics, inventory levels, financial characteristics and future plans. A similar survey was undertaken in the fall and winter of 1998/1999 and provides an opportunity to identify changes or trends that have occurred in the industry between 1999 and 2006. Many of the questions had multiple choice answers with ranges provided (i.e. age ranges, farm sales ranges, farm asset values and etc.). This was intended to be viewed as less intrusive than asking for exact values. Specific values were sought for inventory numbers and numbers of animals marketed and numbers expected to be marketed. The survey instrument consisted of 5 sections. 1) Section A - Personal Information

Each respondent was asked to provide their name, farm name, mailing and 911 address(es), farm location, telephone and fax numbers. This information enabled the survey team to identify the respondents on the survey list and to ensure the information on the list was correct.

2) Section B – Demographics

Producers were asked to complete questions relating to their age and general information about their farm i.e. ownership structure, amount of land owned, type of production system and the amount of feed that is home-grown.



3) Section C – Inventory Respondents were asked to provide actual current inventory levels for boars, sows and other pigs by weight categories. As well, they were asked to provide an estimation of expected sales for 2006 and future intentions for their operations.

4) Section D – Financial Producers were asked to provide an indication of their total farm sales and total farm assets at fair market value. An estimation of the percentage of sales and assets that were directly related to the swine enterprise was also requested. Participants were asked about off-farm employment.

5) Section E – Non-Owners of Pigs People that indicated they did not own pigs at the time of the survey were asked if they were producing pigs under contract and whether they plan to own pigs within the next two years.

2.4 Response Rate

Producer response to the survey was very good as shown in Table 2.1. Many producers responded quickly to this request for information. In fact, 53.9% of producers sent the completed survey form in the mail within the first 5 weeks and before the telephone calls were initiated on July 5. When compared with the results from the 1999 study, the overall response rates were quite similar. When each survey was received by mail or completed on the telephone it was coded as one of the following: a) Complete to Some Extent – Participants answered some or all of the

survey questions. b) Refused to Participate – Respondents did not wish to complete any of the

survey. c) Unable to Contact/No Response – The survey team made several

attempts to contact these individuals through mail and also via telephone when a telephone number was available. Despite this there was no response from these producers. Phone numbers were unavailable for some producers.

Table 2.1 Overall Response Rate

2006 Response Rate 1999 Response Rate Complete to some extent 2,199 86.6% 5,658 85.0%Refused to participate 129 5.1% 304 4.6%Unable to contact/no response 211 8.3% 698 10.5%Total 2,539 100.0% 6,660 100.0%

*Numbers may not add due to rounding



Some participants provided names of other people that had recently started producing pigs. This increased the number of people that were contacted from 2,528 to 2,539. There were 1,790 people who reported they owned pigs at the time of the survey.

2.5 Study Limitations

The goal of the study team at the outset of the survey period was to contact every person that owns one or more pigs in Ontario. As noted above, responses were received from 86.6% of the individuals on the contact list. Despite repeated attempts through mail or by telephone, however, it was not possible to secure responses from every individual. As well, there were some instances where more than one owner of a farm received a survey. When this occurred, the survey responses were only recorded once to avoid double-counting. The timing of the survey was awkward given that May 16, 2006 was Census day in Canada and the requirement to complete the Census form may have negatively impacted the willingness of some producers to participate in this survey. As well, some farmers were planting or spraying crops at the time the survey was distributed and the survey may have been viewed as an inconvenience. Since this was a mail survey an assumption was made that survey respondents understood the intent of each question. The survey did not ask for inventory numbers as of a particular date. This makes it somewhat difficult to compare to other resources such as Statistics Canada July 1 inventory however it does provide an estimation of Ontario’s pig inventory. It is likely that some producers will have over-estimated their inventory while others will have under-estimated. The end result should give a reasonable approximation of the number of pigs. There were verbal and written accounts from some producers indicating that disease problems had been more acute than normal and their inventory numbers were lower than they usually would be.



3.0 RESULTS

The results for Sections B through E on the survey questionnaire are provided below. The response rate is included for each question because not all participants responded to every question.

3.1 Section B - Demographics B1. Do you own 1 or more pigs?

At the time of the survey 1,790 of 2,1771 people or 82.2% of survey respondents indicated they owned pigs. Some respondents provided reasons why they did not currently own pigs. These reasons included the following: they have retired or left the industry; they do not raise hogs continuously throughout the year; or they are in the process of doing a depopulation-repopulation and had no pigs at the time of the survey. A summary of responses from those people that did not own pigs can be found in Section E.

B2. What is the age of the main decision maker of your farming operation?

It was not surprising to find that more than one-third of the main decision makers were greater than 50 years of age. In fact, Table 3.1 shows that 37.1 percent of all respondents who own pigs fall into this age category. This is higher than in 1999 when 31.8 percent of the decision makers were more than 50 years old. The long-standing view that fewer young people are choosing farming as a career may be validated because only 8.3 percent of the respondents were 30 years of age or younger. Respondents between 31 and 40 years of age represented 18.2 percent of replies while those aged 41 to 50 represented 36.4 percent. It appears that Ontario’s pig producers as a group are getting older and there are fewer young people entering the business. There is evidence of this in Table 3.1 that shows the growing percentage of farmers in their 40’s and 50’s in 2006 (73.5% of respondents) compared to 1999 (62.9% of respondents). A more in-depth discussion regarding age of the main decision maker will be provided in a later section.

1 *The 2,177 completed surveys eliminates any double counting that arose due to multiple owners receiving surveys from the same farm.



Table 3.1 Age of Main Decision Maker Age of Decision Maker % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents - 1999

< 25 yrs old 2.5% 1.7% 25 – 30 5.8% 7.2% 31 – 35 7.1% 12.2% 36 - 40 11.1% 15.9% 41 – 45 19.2% 17.2% 46 – 50 17.2% 13.9% 51 – 55 14.1% 12.0% > 55 yrs old 23.0% 19.8%

Response Rate: 1,740 in 2006; 3,330 in 1999 B3. What is the main type of business organization that you have?

The sole proprietorship was the most common business organization among survey respondents with 43.4% of the responses in 2006. However, Table 3.2 shows that partnerships (28.3%) and family corporations (23.1%) are also common business structures used by Ontario pig producers. Business corporations and co-operatives were less common. When compared to 1999, family and business corporations have become more popular business types likely due in part to the larger size and complexity of some of these farms. A discussion on farm size will take place in a later section.

Table 3.2 Business Type Business Organization % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents - 1999

Sole Proprietor 43.4% 55.8% Partnership 28.3% 26.8% Family Corporation 23.1% 14.8% Business Corporation 5.0% 2.4% Co-operative 0.1% 0.2%

Response Rate: 1,747 in 2006; 3,329 in 1999 B4. Are you a seedstock supplier (i.e. breeding stock/multiplier)?

There were 76 survey participants, or 4.3% of the respondents that own pigs, who indicated they were seedstock suppliers.

B5. What is the main swine production system you currently have based on

sales?

The most common swine production system in Ontario is still farrow to finish (58.5%) followed by finishing operations (27.9%). Other production systems are much less common. There has even been a decrease in the frequency of



some specialized production systems such as farrow to early wean, farrow to wean and nursery from 1999 to 2006 as shown in Table 3.3.

Table 3.3 Main Swine Production System

Production System % of Respondents – 2006

% of Respondents - 1999

Farrow to Finish 58.5% 57.2% Farrow to Early Wean (approx. 12lbs) 2.8% 4.0% Farrow to Wean (approx. 50lbs) 5.6% 8.2% Nursery 0.5% 0.3% Wean to Finisher (12 – 25lbs to market) 4.7% 12.7% Finisher (50lbs to market) 27.9% 17.6%

Response Rate: 1,737 in 2006, 3,333 in 1999 B6. How many tillable acres do you own?

Two-thirds (66.7%) of respondents reported that they owned 200 acres of tillable land or less in 2006 as illustrated in Table 3.4. This compares with 74.5 percent in the 1999 survey. There were, however, 21.1 percent of respondents that owned more than 300 acres of tillable land up from only 13.6 percent in 1999. It is likely, at least for some farms, that the amount of land owned will be related to the size of the pig operation. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some large farms prefer to have ownership of land for manure application and/or to grow crops versus renting or other land use agreements.

Table 3.4 Tillable Acres Owned Tillable Acres % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents – 1999< 100 acres 33.0% 40.1% 100 – 200 33.7% 34.4% 201 – 300 12.2% 12.0% > 300 acres 21.1% 13.6%

Response Rate: 1,750 in 2006; 3,265 in 1999 B7. How many acres do you have access to for manure spreading (i.e.

owned, rented, and other arrangements)?

More than one-third (36.9%) of respondents have access to greater than 300 acres of land for manure application. This has changed considerably from 14.5 percent of respondents in 1999. In fact, Table 3.5 shows that in 1999 only 14.5 percent of pig owners had access to greater than 300 acres. This shift will be related to the increasing size of some swine farms and the amount of land required for manure application as determined by nutrient management planning.



Table 3.5 Total Acres Available for Manure Spreading Access to Acres % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents - 1999 < 100 acres 21.7% 58.1% 100 – 200 26.0% 20.0% 201 – 300 15.3% 7.4% > 300 acres 36.9% 14.5%

Response Rate: 1,743 in 2006; 2,778 in 1999 B8. Have you completed a Nutrient Management Plan?

During the survey period 28.8 percent of the participants that owned pigs indicated that they had completed a Nutrient Management Plan. Some participants, particularly smaller producers, did not understand the purpose of a Nutrient Management Plan and confused it with the Environmental Farm Plan. Large farms were much more likely to have completed a Nutrient Management Plan. For example, 88.1 percent of farms that had greater than 1,000 sows reported that they had completed a plan while only 8.4 percent of farms with less than 50 sows had completed the plan. In 1999, only 9.9 percent of the survey respondents had completed a Nutrient Management Plan.

B9. Have you completed an Environmental Farm Plan?

Over one-half of respondents (52.6%) indicated they had completed an Environmental Farm Plan. Similar to the Nutrient Management Plan large farms had a higher frequency of completion than smaller farms. 73.2 percent of farms with more than 1,000 sows had completed an Environmental Farm Plan versus 36.1 percent of farms with less than 50 sows. In 1999, only 24.4 percent of all survey respondents had completed an Environmental Farm Plan.

B10. What is your main source of market information?

Ontario pig producers use a variety of resources to obtain market information as depicted in Table 3.6. While newspapers are the predominant source for more than one-third of respondents (35.3%), the internet and industry magazines are the sources of choice for 19.7 percent and 19 percent of respondents respectively. Large farm businesses reporting greater than $500,000 in total farm sales tend to rely more on the internet compared to small farms with less than $100,000 in sales. In fact, 38.7 percent of the large farms rely on the internet as their main source of information versus only 5.3 percent of small farms.



Table 3.6 Main Source of Market Information Source of Market Information % of Respondents Internet 19.7% Radio 14.8% Newspaper 35.3% Magazine 19.0% Other 11.2%

Response Rate: 1,464

Some examples of “other” sources of market information include television, word of mouth (i.e. truckers, feed salespeople, neighbours), newsletters, input supplier correspondence and services provided by marketing agencies.

B11. What % of total feed used is home-grown crops (i.e. corn, soybeans,

cereals and etc.) as determined by volume of feed used?

Many Ontario pig producers grow some crops for feed. While the amount varies by farm 45.5 percent of survey respondents indicated that they grow more than 60 percent of their total feed needs. The results are shown in Table 3.7.

Table 3.7 Percent of Total Feed Used is Home-grown Crops % Total Feed is Home-Grown Crops % of Respondents

0% 15.0% 1 – 20% 11.9% 21 – 40% 10.7% 41 – 60% 16.8% 61 – 80% 23.2% 81 – 100% 22.3%

Response Rate: 1,712 B12. What % of total feed purchased is complete feed (i.e. formulated &

mixed)?

The majority of survey respondents purchase little or no complete feed as displayed in Table 3.8. This indicates that these farms probably mix their feed on-farm. Of the 16 percent of respondents who reported that more than 80 percent of their feed purchases were for complete feed, two-thirds of them do not produce any home-grown crops for feed. Therefore, they will need to purchase all necessary inputs (i.e. corn, supplement, minerals) and mix the feed or, more likely, they will purchase all complete feed.



Table 3.8 Percent of Total Feed Purchased That is Complete Feed % Total Feed Purchased is Complete % of Respondents

0% 28.5% 1 – 20% 41.2% 21 – 40% 6.0% 41 – 60% 4.7% 61 – 80% 3.5% 81 – 100% 16.0%

Response Rate: 1,714 3.2 Section C – Inventory C1. Current Inventory Levels

Survey respondents reported that at the time of the survey they owned 2,913,875 pigs. This accounted for slightly more than 80 percent of Statistics Canada inventory estimate as of July 1. A breakdown by category is provided in Table 3.9. The categories for pigs weighing less than 20kg and greater than 60kg were quite close to the Statistics Canada inventory. The inventory numbers provided in the survey indicate that a large part of Ontario’s pig production has been included; however, some participants chose not to disclose their inventory numbers.

Table 3.9 Inventory Levels Survey Results Statistics Canada Results

(July 1, 2006) Survey/Stats

Can Pig Type # Animals % of Total # of Animals % of Total % Difference

Sows & bred gilts 295,554 10.1% 425,100 11.8% 30.5%

Boars, 6+ months 5,719 0.2% 10,500 0.4% 45.5%

Pigs < 20kg 987,212 33.9% 1,124,000 31.2% 12.2%

Pigs 20-60 kg 763,765 26.2% 1,074,000 29.8% 28.9%

Pigs > 60 kg 861,625 29.6% 966,400 26.8% 10.8%

Total 2,913,875 100.0% 3,600,000 100% 19.1% C2. What is the approximate number of pigs you sold in 2005 excluding

market hogs? Table 3.10 shows the number of pigs survey participants sold during 2005 broken down by pig category. They were not asked to provide the number of market hogs sold.



Table 3.10 Number of Pigs Sold in 2005 Pig Type # of PigsSEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,198,599Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 1,002,153Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 260,498

C3. What is the number of pigs you expect to sell in 2006?

Survey participants provided an indication of their marketing expectations for 2006. In total, the respondents expect to sell 7,667,974 pigs as shown in Table 3.11. This is mainly comprised of market hog sales (5.1 million), SEW piglets (1.4 million) and weaner pigs (1.0 million).

Table 3.11 Number of Pigs to be Sold in 2006 Pig Type # of Pigs SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,387,989Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 1,023,652Market hogs 5,086,092Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 170,241Total pigs to sell in 2006 7,667,974

C4. During the next two years, do you plan to increase, decrease, stay the

same size or leave the industry?

Table 3.12 shows that the majority (73.7%) of people that responded to the survey indicated they intend to stay the same size during the next two years. Many producers recall the turbulent times in late 1998 and early 1999 when pig prices sank to historic lows and they may still be cautious about expanding their pig operations. As well, some producers indicated they were battling disease outbreaks such as PRRS and Porcine Circo-virus. There were 13.1 percent that plan to increase the size of their operations while 3.3 percent plan to decrease and 9.8 percent plan to leave the industry altogether. Some producers indicated on the survey form that they were concerned about current pig prices and the effect this will have on their future plans. A breakdown of future intentions is provided in Table 3.12.

Table 3.12 Future Intentions Increase by < 5% 2.0% Decrease by < 5% 0.5% 5 – 10% 4.7% 5 – 10% 0.7% 11 – 20% 3.2% 11 – 20% 0.8% 21 – 50% 1.6% 21 – 50% 0.7% > 50% 1.6% > 50% 0.6%Stay Same Size 73.7% Leave Industry 9.8%




C5. If you own sows, do you plan to increase sow numbers, decrease or stay the same during the next 2 years?

More than three-quarters (78%) of survey respondents that own sows reported that they plan to keep their sow numbers about the same. There was some optimism expressed by the 15.1 percent of respondents that indicated they plan to increase their sow numbers during the next two years. Another 7 percent, however, plan to decrease sow numbers and 4.4 percent plan to cut their sow numbers by more than half. The results are shown in Table 3.13.

Table 3.13 Future Intentions Regarding Sow Numbers Increase by < 5% 3.7% Decrease by < 5% 1.1% 5 – 10% 5.1% 5 – 10% 0.5% 11 – 20% 3.8% 11 – 20% 0.5% 21 – 50% 1.4% 21 – 50% 0.5% > 50% 1.1% > 50% 4.4%Stay Same Size 78.0%

Response Rate: 1,064 3.3 Section D – Financial D1a. What are your approximate total gross farm sales (i.e. include all farm

sales from livestock, crops, and etc.)?

The trend to fewer, small farms, and more large farms is shown in Table 3.14. Small farms with less than $100,000 in total farm sales represented 23.2% of respondents in 2006 (down from 37.7% in 1999) and they accounted for only 1.9% of the total inventory in 2006. In 1999 these small farms had 6.8% of the inventory. In contrast, large farms with greater than $500,000 in sales represented 27 percent of respondents in 2006 (up from 12.8% in 1999) and 79.5 percent of the inventory in 2006 (versus 54.4% in 1999).

Table 3.14 Gross Farm Sales 2006 1999

Total Farm Sales % of Resp Inventory %

Inventory% of

Resp Inventory % Inventory

< $50,000 11.3% 14,553 0.5% 20.2% 57,396 2.3%$50,000 - $100,000 11.9% 37,801 1.4% 17.5% 114,042 4.5%$100,001 - $250,000 25.8% 179,071 6.6% 30.6% 418,727 16.7%$250,001 - $500,000 23.9% 327,403 12.0% 18.9% 553,200 22.0%$500,001 - $1 million 14.3% 439,810 16.1% 8.0% 431,260 17.2%

> $1 million 12.7% 1,731,900 63.4% 4.8% 934,659 37.2% 2,730,538 2,509,284

Response Rate: 1,642 in 2006; 3,155 in 1999; Resp = Respondents



D1b. What % of your total gross farm sales are swine related?

Responses for this question are fairly similar to those recorded in 1999. The results show that although there is diversity on most farms many survey participants indicated that a considerable amount of their farm sales were swine related. In fact, almost one-half (48.5%) of the respondents reported that more than 60 percent of their farm sales were attributed to the swine enterprise in 2006. This is displayed in Table 3.15. It is notable that 27.4 percent derive more than 80% of their total farm sales from swine.

Table 3.15 Percent of Farm Sales that are Swine Related

% of Farm Sales % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents – 1999< 20% 13.2% 18.6%

20 – 40% 20.1% 21.5% 41 – 60% 18.1% 17.8% 61 – 80% 21.1% 17.2%

81 – 100% 27.4% 24.8% Response Rate: 1,670 in 2006; 3,221 in 1999

D2a. What is the current Fair Market Value of your total farm assets (i.e.

include land, buildings, machinery, livestock, crops, and etc.)?

The fair market value of total farm assets varied widely across survey respondents. One-third of respondents reported their farm assets in the $500,000 to $1 million range. Table 3.16 shows that the asset base for Ontario pig farmers has increased significantly from 1999 to 2006. In 1999 only 19.7 percent of respondents had total assets greater than $1 million compared to 45.6 percent of respondents in 2006. Asset values are a reflection of the size and location of the farms, age of buildings, and the type of farm (and the equipment and livestock required on the farm).

Table 3.16 Fair Market Value of Total Farm Assets

Fair Market Value % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents – 1999< $100,000 2.8% 13.2%

$100,000 - $500,000 18.0% 41.4% $500,001 - $1,000,000 33.6% 25.7%

$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 16.1% 9.1% $1,500,001 - $3,000,000 16.8% 7.5%

> $3,000,000 12.7% 3.1% Response Rate: 1,581 in 2006; 3,065 in 1999



D2b. What % of your total farm assets are swine related?

Similar to 1999 it appears that in 2006 many farms derive their swine income from a small part of their asset base. Table 3.17 shows in 2006, for example, that 56.2 percent of respondents indicated that their swine production assets are 40 percent or lower. While this could reflect the older age of some swine buildings it may also indicate that respondents did not attribute enough of their assets such as land to the swine enterprise. Land that is used to grow crops for feed or for manure application should be included.

Table 3.17 Percent of Farm Assets that are Swine Related

% of Farm Assets % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents – 1999< 20% 29.8% 38.6%

20 – 40% 26.4% 24.7% 41 – 60% 17.7% 14.1% 61 – 80% 12.2% 9.6%

81 – 100% 13.9% 13.0% Response Rate: 1,646 in 2006; 3,148 in 1999

D3. How would you rate your farm’s debt level (i.e. as a % of total farm

assets)?

Slightly more than half (51.4%) of the 2006 survey respondents indicated that they have low debt levels. Table 3.18 shows that 55.8 percent reported low debt in 1999. The operators of the low debt farms are older farmers and have had the opportunity to reduce their debt levels over time. These farm businesses tend to be smaller in terms of total farm sales and total farm assets. The high debt farms tend to be larger and are likely to have made significant capital investments in the swine enterprise during the previous two years. For example, 25.2% of high debt farms invested more than $100,000 in the last 2 years compared to 4.7% of low debt farms.

Table 3.18 Farm Debt Level Debt Level % of Respondents - 2006 % of Respondents – 1999Low (< 33% debt) 51.4% 55.8% Medium (33% – 66% debt) 36.3% 33.0% High (> 66% debt) 12.3% 11.2%

Response Rate: 1,631 in 2006; 3,059 in 1999 D4. In the previous 2 years and next 2 years what is the amount of new

capital investment in swine buildings, breeding stock and barn equipment?

The majority of producers in 2006 do not plan to make any significant capital investment in the next 2 years as depicted in Table 3.19. There is, however,



a slightly higher percentage of respondents in 2006 who plan to make large investments compared to 1999. For example, in 2006 4.1 percent plan to invest more than $250,000 compared to only 2.4 percent of respondents in 1999 who expected to invest this much. It is likely that the 1999 respondents’ answers to this question would have been influenced by the historically low prices experienced at that time. In the previous two years nearly 7 percent of respondents indicated that they have invested more than $250,000 in their swine enterprise.

Table 3.19 New Capital Investment

Capital Investment Previous 2 Years Next 2 Years 1999 Responses for

Future Investing < $5,000 52.0% 55.5% $5,000 - $25,000 24.6% 25.7% 87.1%

$25,001 - $100,000 11.2% 11.2% 8.1% $100,001 - $250,000 5.6% 3.4% 2.5% $250,001 - $500,000 2.9% 1.9% > $500,000 3.7% 2.2% 2.4%

Response Rate: 1,576 for previous 2 years; 1,516 for next 2 years; 3,074 for 1999 D5a. Do you have off-farm employment?

There were 1,682 participants who responded to the question about off-farm employment. There were 390 participants, or 23.2 percent, who reported they did have off-farm employment.

D5b. If yes, is your pay greater than $35,000/year before tax and other

deductions?

This question asked participants if the pay from their off-farm employment was more than $35,000 per year before tax and other deductions. Of the 383 responses 164 participants, or 42.8 percent, indicated their pay was greater than this amount.

D6. What % of your total personal income would come from the swine

enterprise?

There was a wide variety of responses from respondents with respect to the amount of their personal income that comes from the swine business. This will be related to the profitability of the swine enterprise as well as whether they have other forms of income such as other farm income, off-farm employment, investment income and so on.



Table 3.20 Percent of Personal Income from Swine Enterprise % Personal Income % of Respondents< 20% 28.3% 20 – 40% 19.9% 41 – 60% 14.0% 61 – 80% 13.9% 81 – 100% 23.9%

Response Rate: 1,595 3.4 Section E – For Non-Owners of Pigs E1. This question asked people who indicated that they did not own pigs

whether they were contract growers.

Of the survey participants that indicated they were contract growers 67 percent reported that they were contract finishers in 2006 while 24.8 percent indicated they were contract nursery growers and 8.3 percent were contract farrow to early wean. Table 3.21 shows that contract finishing was the most common arrangement but the frequency had decreased from 85.4 percent of respondents in 1999. Contract nursery growers have increased from 10.8 percent of respondents in 1999 to 24.8 percent in 2006.

Table 3.21 Production Systems Production System % of Respondents -

2006 % of Respondents –

1999 Contract Farrow to Early Wean 8.3% 3.8% Contract Nursery 24.8% 10.8% Contract Finisher 67.0% 85.4%

Response Rate: 109 in 2006; 185 in 1999 E2. Do you plan on owning your own animals within the next 2 years?

Of the 326 responses from respondents that didn’t own pigs at the time of the survey, 21.8 percent indicated that they do plan on owning pigs within the next two years while 78.2 percent do not plan to own pigs.



4.0 ASSESSMENT OF KEY FACTORS

The Ontario swine industry is influenced by many factors. This study has identified five key factors that provide insight into what is occurring in the industry. These factors include: the age of the main decision maker; business ownership; farm size; level of debt; and the role of off-farm employment. These factors will be discussed in this section.

4.1 The Age Factor

As stated earlier in Section 3.1, there are fewer young farmers in the industry than there are older farmers. The numbers showed that there are 2.8 older farmers (i.e. more than 55 years of age) for every 1 young farmer aged 30 or younger. It is important to compare these two groups of producers and the influence they have on the industry. Table 4.1 shows the age of the main decision maker with respect to their total farm sales. This includes all farm sales, not just sales from swine. As expected, more than half (i.e. 51.2%) of farmers who are less than 25 years old have small farms. As the age of the respondents increases, so does the frequency of increased farm sales. This trend continues until the main operator is more than 55 years old and by this age many of these individuals are contemplating retirement or may be decreasing the size of their farm business. It is also possible that some of these farms have always been the same size but they are now considered ‘smaller’ because the average farm size has increased.

Table 4.1 Age vs Total Farm Sales

Total Farm Sales Age of Decision Maker % of Resp < $100,000 $100,000 -

$250,000 $250,001 - $500,000 > $500,000

< 25 yrs 2.4% 51.2% 23.1% 17.9% 7.7% 25-30 yrs 6.0% 20.6% 40.2% 20.6% 18.5% 31-35 yrs 7.3% 13.5% 33.9% 24.6% 28.0% 36-40 yrs 11.2% 15.9% 28.0% 27.5% 28.5% 41-45 yrs 19.2% 15.1% 24.4% 29.9% 30.5% 46-50 yrs 16.8% 13.6% 26.4% 27.5% 32.6% 51-55yrs 14.4% 21.4% 24.0% 22.7% 31.8% > 55 yrs 22.8% 42.2% 21.6% 16.8% 19.5% Response Rate: 1,623; % of Resp = % of Respondents



Table 4.2 displays results from producers that own sows and it shows that nearly half (i.e. 47.4%) of very young producers (i.e. less than 25 years old) and 54.1 percent of the older participants (i.e. more than 55 years old) are small swine operations with less than 50 sows. The young producers will start small and build their swine businesses over time.

Table 4.2 Age vs Number of Sows

Number of Sows Age of Decision Maker % of Resp < 50 50-100 101 -200 201 - 500 501-1,000 > 1,000 < 25 yrs 1.7% 47.4% 21.1% 10.5% 15.8% 5.3% 0.0% 25-30 yrs 6.5% 36.5% 27.0% 13.5% 14.9% 2.7% 5.4% 31-35 yrs 6.8% 26.9% 26.9% 21.8% 12.8% 6.4% 5.1% 36-40 yrs 11.8% 34.8% 21.5% 14.1% 15.6% 6.7% 7.4% 41-45 yrs 19.9% 28.1% 25.4% 18.4% 17.5% 7.0% 3.5% 46-50 yrs 18.7% 29.9% 22.0% 23.8% 13.6% 4.7% 6.1% 51-55yrs 13.3% 34.2% 21.7% 14.5% 17.1% 6.6% 5.9% > 55 yrs 21.3% 54.1% 19.7% 7.8% 8.6% 4.5% 5.3% Response Rate: 1,144

A big difference between young and old farmers is the level of debt they have. As shown in Table 4.3 approximately one-third of younger farmers reported that they have high debt levels on their farms. This will be because they may have purchased land, buildings, livestock and/or equipment in order to get their farm business going. On the other hand, less than 10 percent of older farmers have high debt. This will be because older farmers have had time to pay down debt and are less likely to be investing in capital for their business. It is somewhat surprising to see that 45.9 percent of very young farmers have low debt but this may be because they are relying on renting capital items such as land and buildings versus purchasing until they can afford to buy. Table 4.3 Age vs Debt Level Age of Decision Maker % of Resp Low Debt Medium Debt High Debt

< 25 yrs 2.3% 45.9% 21.6% 32.4%25-30 yrs 5.8% 24.7% 39.8% 35.5%31-35 yrs 7.2% 37.6% 43.6% 18.8%36-40 yrs 11.1% 48.3% 35.6% 16.1%41-45 yrs 19.3% 46.3% 43.4% 10.3%46-50 yrs 17.0% 44.5% 46.4% 9.1%51-55yrs 14.4% 57.3% 34.1% 8.6%> 55 yrs 22.9% 70.3% 22.7% 7.0%




4.2 Farm Size

As discussed previously farm size varied greatly among the survey participants. Recall from Table 3.14 that the 12.7 percent of respondents who have greater than $1 million in total farm sales control 63.4 percent of the pig inventory accounted for in the survey. In contrast, the 11.3 percent of participants that have less than $50,000 in total farm sales control only 0.5 percent of the pigs. Ownership of large farms sometimes becomes a hot issue with concerns about the number that are family-owned and references to “corporate farms”. As the size of the farm increases it often becomes more complex and it is not uncommon for the business to adopt a more complex organizational structure. This may be done for tax and liability purposes. Table 4.4 shows that in the smallest sales category with less than $100,000 in farm sales 65.2 percent of respondents were sole proprietors compared to only 16.1 percent in the greater than $500,000 sales category. As farm sales increase so does the frequency of partnership, and family and business corporations. This being said, the majority of the responding farms are family-operated and even in the largest farm sales category only 13.1 percent are classed as business corporations.

Table 4.4 Farm Size vs Business Organization Farm Sales % of Resp Sole Prop Partnership Family

Corp Business

Corp Co-op

<$100,000 23.2% 65.2% 23.7% 10.1% 0.8% 0.3%$100,000-$250,000 25.8% 58.2% 32.5% 8.1% 1.2% 0.0%$250,001-$500,000 23.8% 37.5% 35.4% 23.5% 3.6% 0.0%>$500,000 27.2% 16.1% 22.6% 48.0% 13.1% 0.2%

Response Rate: 1,624 Table 4.5 shows that 37.6 percent of small farms with less than $100,000 in total farm sales were finishing operations. This is higher than the other farm sales categories. Recall that farrow to finish farms and finishing farms represented the majority of respondents so the tendency toward these two production systems will naturally be higher than for the other systems. It is possible that finishing pigs is an easier way for people to be involved in pig production without having high levels of capital investment in buildings and breeding stock that are needed for some of the other systems. Also, finishing tends to be less labour-intensive and may allow the producer time to do other things (i.e. other farm enterprises, off-farm job, and etc.).

Table 4.5 Farm Size vs Production System Farm Sales % of

RespFarrow Finish FEW Farrow

Wean Nursery Wean Finish Finish

<$100,000 23.1% 48.3% 0.5% 9.1% 0.0% 4.5% 37.6%$100,000-$250,000 26.0% 65.3% 1.9% 5.2% 0.5% 1.4% 25.7%$250,001-$500,000 24.0% 64.0% 2.3% 3.1% 0.3% 4.9% 25.4%>$500,000 26.9% 56.5% 5.9% 6.4% 1.1% 7.1% 22.9%




As farm sales increase there is a more frequent occurrence of high farm debt. This is displayed in Table 4.6 that shows 6.6 percent of small farms have high debt compared to 19.9 percent of large farms. Higher levels of debt are more common on large farms because they will have accumulated debt in order to grow their farm business and they are financing both larger inventories and facilities. These large farms are more specialized in pig production. Three quarters of large farms report that at least 60 percent of their total farm sales are directly attributed to the swine business compared to only one-quarter of small farms.

Table 4.6 Farm Size vs Debt Level Farm Sales % of Resp Low Debt Medium Debt High Debt<$100,000 22.7% 72.7% 20.7% 6.6%$100,000-$250,000 25.8% 60.7% 31.8% 7.5%$250,001-$500,000 24.2% 51.3% 35.5% 13.2%>$500,000 27.4% 24.9% 55.1% 19.9%


Access to sufficient amounts of land for the application of manure is a critical element for Ontario pig producers. Ever since the Walkerton water tragedy more attention has been directed toward nutrient management. It makes sense then that as farm size increases (as determined by the number of sows) so does the amount of land for manure application. This is demonstrated in Table 4.7 where farms that have access to greater than 300 acres of land for manure application increase in frequency as the number of sows increases. Only 11.6 percent of farms with less than 50 sows have access to more than 300 acres of land for manure application while 93.1 percent of farms with greater than 1,000 sows have access to this amount of land. Some swine producers have reported that they prefer to own enough land to apply manure to rather than relying on neighbours to take the manure. There may be some evidence of this because the frequency of owning greater than 300 acres of land increases as the number of sows increases. For example, only 6.1 percent of the farms with less than 50 sows own 300 acres compared to 59.6 percent of farms with greater than 1,000 sows. However, some caution must be exercised here because the increased land base may also result from the ownership of land for crop production purposes. A Nutrient Management Plan (NMP) is a requirement for large swine farms. It is not surprising then that as the farm size increases so does the frequency of having completed a NMP with 88.1 percent of the large farms (i.e. greater than 1,000 sows) reporting that they had completed one.



Table 4.7 Size vs Land and Nutrient Management # of Sows > 300 Acres for

Manure > 300 Acres

Owned NMP Completed

< 50 Sows 11.6% 6.1% 8.4% 50 – 100 Sows 21.6% 12.8% 18.5% 101 – 200 Sows 49.4% 20.4% 28.3% 201 – 500 Sows 72.3% 42.2% 66.3% 501 – 1,000 Sows 80.3% 57.6% 77.8% > 1,000 Sows 93.1% 59.6% 88.1%

4.3 Business Arrangement

Recall from Section 3.3 that as Ontario pig farms have grown in size some have adopted more complex business arrangements. Still, most farms are family owned and operated. Table 4.8 shows business arrangements by sow inventory levels. This is a measure of farm size. It shows that complex business arrangements are more common as farm size increases.

While business corporations only represented 4.7 percent of the respondents, 33.3 percent of them were very large swine enterprises that owned greater than 1,000 sows. On the other hand, sole proprietors comprised 40.5 percent of the respondents but 81.8 percent were small pig operations with 100 sows or less. It is important to note that 80.5% of the farms with 500 sows or more are owned by sole proprietors, partnerships or family corporations.

Table 4.8 Business Arrangement vs Sow Inventory

Sow Inventory Business Arrangement % of Resp < 50 50 - 100 101 - 200 201 - 500 501 – 1,000 > 1,000 Sole Prop 40.5% 57.2% 24.6% 10.7% 4.5% 1.5% 1.5% Partner 29.7% 31.0% 31.3% 18.4% 14.6% 2.6% 2.0% Fam Corp 25.1% 15.2% 11.4% 21.8% 27.3% 14.9% 9.3% Bus Corp 4.7% 3.7% 13.0% 7.4% 29.6% 13.0% 33.3%


With respect to actual farm sales, 34.8 percent of sole proprietors had less than $100,000 in sales compared to only 19.3 percent of partnerships that had this amount. Verification that corporations are larger businesses is shown by the fact than 32 percent of family corporations and half of business corporations had more than $1 million in farm sales. Table 4.9 displays business arrangement by the percent of feed that is home-grown. The majority of family operated farms grow at least some of their feed needs. On the other hand, half of business corporations do not grow any of their own feed. The results imply that sole proprietors, partnerships and family corporations are more diversified and tend to be more land-based than business corporations that have pigs as their core focus. This is supported by the fact that 83.8 percent of business corporations report that more than 60 percent of their total farm sales are swine related compared to 64.8



percent of family corporations, 49.1 percent of partnerships and 35.9 percent of sole proprietors. It is common for many family operated swine businesses to also grow crops, some of which will be used for feed.

Table 4.9 Business Arrangement vs % Feed that is Home-Grown

% of Feed that is Home-Grown Business Arrangement % of Rep 0% 1%-20% 21%-40% 41%-60% 61%-80% 81%-100%Sole Prop 43.6% 13.6% 13.1% 12.2% 15.3% 22.6% 23.2% Partner 28.3% 13.8% 12.9% 11.5% 19.6% 21.5% 20.7% Fam Corp 23.1% 12.3% 9.5% 7.9% 17.6% 27.9% 24.8% Bus Corp 5.1% 50.0% 5.8% 7.0% 10.5% 11.6% 15.1% Response Rate: 1,694 4.4 Debt

The level of debt at the farm level varied considerably across all farm sizes and business types. Age of the main decision maker was an influencing factor though as shown in Table 4.10. Nearly half (i.e. 47.3%) of low debt level farms are operated by producers greater than 50 years of age. These producers have had the opportunity to pay down debt over time. In comparison, 22.6 percent of high debt farms are owned or controlled by decision makers that are 30 years of age or less. Another 25.7 percent are in their thirties. These young producers will be looking to grow their businesses which will mean they will increase their debt obligations as they build facilities and purchase inventory and equipment.

Table 4.10 Farm Debt Level vs Age of Decision Maker

Age of Main Decision Maker Farm Debt Level

% of Resp < 25 25 - 30 31 - 35 36-40 41-45 46-50 51-55 >55

Low 51.4% 2.0% 2.8% 5.3% 10.5% 17.3% 14.7% 16.0% 31.3% Medium 36.2% 1.4% 6.3% 8.7% 10.9% 23.1% 21.7% 13.5% 14.4% High 12.3% 6.0% 16.6% 11.1% 14.6% 16.1% 12.6% 10.1% 13.1% Response Rate: 1,614

Business corporations have the highest frequency of high debt farms as shown in Table 4.11. Recall from Section 4.3 that these farms also tend to be large. As a result they have bigger financial obligations due to larger inventory levels, as well as bigger and possibly newer facilities than most small farms. 59.5 percent of sole proprietors have low debt. This makes sense because these farms on average tend to be smaller and operated by older farmers. In the next 2 years 11.3% of low debt farms and 9.8% of high debt farms plan to leave the industry.



Table 4.11 Business Type vs Farm Debt Level Farm Debt Level Business

Type % of Resp Low Debt Medium Debt High Debt Sole Prop 43.3% 59.5% 29.9% 10.6% Partner 28.4% 50.4% 36.7% 12.9% Fam Corp 23.6% 40.8% 45.3% 13.9% Bus Corp 4.8% 33.8% 46.8% 19.5%

Response Rate: 1,613 4.5 Off-Farm Employment

About 23 percent of the respondents that owned pigs also indicated that they had off-farm employment as illustrated in Table 4.12. It appears that respondents are more likely to have some form of off-farm employment if their farm size is smaller. Intuitively this makes sense as small farms may not provide sufficient family income. Table 4.12 Off-Farm Employment vs Total Farm Sales

Total Farm Sales Off-Farm Employment Income % of Resp < $100,000 $100,000 -

$250,000 $250,001 - $500,000 > $500,000

Have Emp Income 23.1% 36.1% 27.5% 18.3% 18.1% Don’t Have Emp Income 76.9% 19.2% 25.3% 25.3% 30.2%


Of those that reported having off-farm employment and who gave an indication of their salary (i.e. less than or greater than $35,000/year), 43.7 percent indicated that their off-farm employment income was greater than $35,000/year before tax and other deductions. One-half of these respondents have finishing operations. Often less labour is required on finishing farms than for some other types of production systems such as farrow to finish making it somewhat easier to have off-farm employment. Initially, it was expected that large off-farm employment income (i.e. greater than $35,000/year) would be more common on smaller farms however there was a fairly equal distribution across all farm sizes. This is shown in Table 4.13. Almost one-fifth (i.e. 17.2%) of respondents with greater than $35,000/year in off-farm employment income reported that their farm sales were in excess of $1,000,000.

Table 4.13 Off-Farm Employment Income vs Farm Size

Total Farm Sales Off-Farm Employment Income

% of Resp < $50,000 $50,000 -

$100,000 $100,001 - $250,000

$250,001 - $500,000

$500,001 - $1 million

> $1 million

< $35,000 56.3% 19.3% 17.8% 32.7% 21.8% 5.9% 2.5% > $35,000 43.7% 21.0% 12.1% 21.7% 15.3% 12.7% 17.2%

Response Rate: 359



Part of the reason, however, may be due to the level of debt on responding farms. It is reasonable to assume that some of these individuals have off-farm employment to ease financial pressures particularly on farms with medium and high levels of debt. In Table 4.14 farms with greater than $35,000 in off-farm employment income did report a higher frequency of having high debt (17.8% vs 12.9% of farms with less than $35,000 off-farm employment income).

Table 4.14 Off-Farm Employment Income vs Farm Debt

Farm Debt Level Off-Farm Employment Income % of Resp Low Debt Medium Debt High Debt < $35,000 56.3% 52.0% 35.1% 12.9% > $35,000 43.7% 44.6% 37.6% 17.8%

Response Rate: 359 4.6 Comparison by Production System

In Table 4.15 below is a comparison of the six production systems highlighting variables that have been key to the discussion so far. Recall from Section 3 that farrow to finish and finishing operations were the two most common production systems. Also recall that 37.1 percent of all respondents were greater than 50 years of age. Nursery operations tended to be the anomaly with only 12.5% of respondents being in this age category but caution should be exercised because this group consisted of only a few participants. Family and business corporations are becoming common business structures on Ontario pig farms but were most frequently reported on farrow to early wean and nursery operations. These two production systems also reported having 58 to 63 percent of respondents with more than $500,000 in total farm sales, the highest out of all production systems. High levels of debt were also more common on these farm types with about one-quarter of participants indicating they had high debt. With respect to off-farm employment, on farms that don’t have sows (i.e. nursery, wean to finish and finish) it was more common for the main decision maker to have off-farm employment.

Table 4.15 Production System by Key Variables

Production System > 50 Yrs Old

Fam/Bus Corp High Debt > $500,000

Sales Off-Farm Employ

Farrow to Finish 34.6% 29.0% 10.7% 26.0% 17.6% Farrow to Early Wean 31.9% 41.7% 26.7% 57.8% 6.8% Farrow to Wean 34.0% 28.6% 20.4% 29.2% 17.5% Nursery 12.5% 42.9% 25.0% 62.5% 42.9% Wean to Finish 43.8% 33.3% 14.9% 42.5% 26.0% Finish 41.8% 23.3% 11.5% 22.3% 37.1%



Table 4.16 shows farrow to finish farms split out by the number of sows in inventory and finishing farms by the number of hogs they expect to market in 2006. This data shows that a large portion of the producer base consists of small swine farms. For example, 40% of farrow to finish farms have 50 sows or less and 46% of finishing farms plan to market 500 hogs or fewer in 2006. On the other hand only 7% of farrow to finish and 10% of finishing producers could be considered large. The 7% of farrow to finish farms however own 46.6% of the total inventory reported by all survey respondents.

Table 4.16 Farrow to Finish and Finishing Farms by Size Farrow to Finish Finishing - # of Hogs to # of Sows % of Resp Market in 2006 % of Resp 1 – 25 22% < 100 17% 26 – 50 18% 101 – 500 29% 51 – 100 23% 501 – 1,000 15% 101 – 200 16% 1,001 – 3,000 25% 201 – 500 14% 3,001 – 5,000 9% 501 – 1,000 4% > 5,000 10% > 1,000 3%

Response Rate: 988 for farrow to finish and 464 for finishing

In summary, age of the decision maker, type of business ownership, farm size, farm debt level and the role of off-farm employment all contribute to the changes that are occurring in the industry.



5.0 THE FUTURE OF THE INDUSTRY

During the past few years Ontario’s swine farms have gotten larger and more specialized often devoting more resources to swine production rather than other enterprises. While sole proprietorships continue to be the dominant business arrangement in terms of number of farms, they represent a small share of the number of pigs while partnerships and incorporated farms grow in terms of number of farms and number of pigs owned. Overall, 73.7 percent of all respondents plan to maintain their current size in the next two years and 13.1 percent plan to increase while 3.3 percent plan to decrease and a further 9.8 percent plan to leave the industry altogether.

5.1 Age of Decision Maker and Future Intentions

A key factor discussed throughout this report relates to the age of Ontario swine producers. Recall that 37.1 percent of all survey respondents were greater than 50 years of age. This high percentage leaves little room for doubt that there will not be enough young farmers to replace those that will be leaving in the next few years. There is evidence that many older farmers plan on leaving in the near future. Table 5.1 shows that 16.2 percent of producers older than 50, or close to 100 producers, plan to leave the industry in the next 2 years. It is unlikely that an equal number of new people will enter the industry to compensate for the loss of these farms. It is encouraging however, to see that 20 to 24 percent of younger farmers plan on increasing the size of their swine operations in the next 2 years. This shows that these young producers are committed to the industry. The increased production that will result from the growing enterprises will help off-set production that is lost when older farmers leave the industry. Table 5.1 Age of Decision Maker by Future Intentions Age of Decision Maker % of Resp Increase Decrease Stay Same Leave

< 31 8.5% 20.1% 2.9% 70.5% 6.5% 31 – 35 7.2% 23.7% 0% 71.2% 5.1% 36 – 40 11.3% 14.7% 2.2% 78.3% 4.9% 41 – 45 19.3% 16.9% 1.6% 74.8% 6.7% 46 – 50 17.3% 12.5% 3.9% 78.3% 5.3% > 50 36.4% 5.7% 5.2% 72.8% 16.2%

Response Rate: 1,628 5.2 Farm Size and Future Plans

With respect to farm size as determined by total farm sales, it is not too surprising that a higher percentage of large farms plan to increase their swine enterprises in the next 2 years as depicted in Table 5.2. Approximately 20



percent of farms with more than $1 million in farm sales plan to increase in the near future. On small and medium size farms there are similar rates of respondents planning to increase their operation as there are respondents planning to leave the industry. There appears to be more optimism for growth on larger farms. Table 5.2 Farm Size and Future Plans

Farm Size % of Resp Increase Decrease Stay Same Leave Industry < $50,000 11.1% 15.0% 2.9% 65.3% 16.8% $50,000 - $100,000 11.8% 10.9% 3.8% 69.6% 15.8% $100,001 - $250,000 25.8% 9.5% 4.0% 76.1% 10.4% $250,001 - $500,000 24.4% 13.4% 3.7% 76.4% 6.6% $500,001 - $1 million 14.2% 18.0% 1.8% 76.6% 3.6% > $1 million 12.7% 20.2% 3.5% 73.7% 2.5% Response Rate: 1,560

5.3 Production System and Future Plans

Table 5.3 displays results by production system with respect to future plans. Immediately noticeable is the high percentage of nursery respondents that plan to increase their operation in the next 2 years. It is important to remember however, that this group consists of only a very small number of respondents. Every production system reported that more than 10 percent of respondents plan to increase their swine operations in the near future. Finishing operations had the highest rate of respondents that plan to exit the industry in the next 2 years. It is important to remember that 41.8 percent of the finishers were older than 50 years of age and this helps to explain the higher rate of people planning to leave the industry.

Table 5.3 Production System and Future Plans Production System % of Resp Increase Decrease Stay Same Leave Industry Farrow to Finish 58.5% 13.4% 2.8% 75.1% 8.6% Farrow Early Wean 2.8% 13.0% 2.2% 80.4% 4.3% Farrow to Wean 5.8% 12.7% 3.3% 74.7% 9.5% Nursery 0.5% 25.0% 0.0% 75.0% 0.0% Wean to Finish 4.7% 10.4% 7.8% 76.6% 5.2% Finisher 27.6% 11.1% 3.2% 73.2% 12.5%

Response Rate: 1,626 5.4 Specialization and Future Plans

Ontario farmers that are specialized in pig production will play a large role in the future of the industry. Table 5.4 shows that as the farm becomes more focused on raising pigs (i.e. as the percentage of total sales from swine increases) there is a greater likelihood that these farms will increase in size. This is important because the respondents that reported having more than 60% of their sales from swine currently represent slightly more than 2 million pigs or 71.8 percent of the inventory captured in this survey. Farms with less



than 20 percent of sales related to swine are smaller with one-half of them reporting less than $100,000 in total sales and they have only 1.4 percent of the pig inventory. Nearly one quarter (i.e. 22.7%) of participants who reported that less than 20 percent of their sales were swine related plan to leave the industry.

Table 5.4 Specialization by Future Plans

% Farm Sales Swine Related % of Resp Increase Decrease Stay Same Leave Industry < 20% 12.5% 10.1% 2.5% 64.6% 22.7% 20 – 40% 20.0% 8.3% 2.7% 81.0% 7.9% 41 – 60% 18.5% 11.6% 3.0% 78.5% 6.8% 61 – 80% 21.1% 17.7% 5.4% 69.8% 7.2% 81 – 100% 27.8% 16.5% 3.0% 73.0% 7.5%

Response Rate: 1,581 5.5 Farm Debt Level and Future Plans

Farms with low levels of debt have the highest percentage of people leaving the industry in the next couple of years as depicted in Table 5.5. Many of these farmers are people who will be retiring. About 17 percent of medium and high debt level farms plan to increase in size in the future. The medium and high debt farms tend to be large farms and the decision makers are younger than on low debt farms. They will have accumulated debt as they have been investing in their operation. Of concern however, is the 9.8 percent of high debt farms that plan to leave the industry. It is unknown whether these participants are leaving the swine industry to concentrate on another commodity or if they are leaving agriculture altogether.

Table 5.5 Farm Debt by Future Plans % of Resp Increase Decrease Stay Same Leave Industry

Low 51.3% 10.1% 3.8% 74.8% 11.3% Medium 36.2% 16.9% 3.3% 73.8% 5.9% High 12.5% 17.2% 2.0% 71.0% 9.8%

Response Rate: 1,548 5.6 Future Investment in the Industry

While 73.7 percent of respondents plan to stay the same size, another 13.1 percent plan to increase their swine enterprise. Most operations that plan to substantially increase the size of their swine business will need to acquire additional capital such as buildings in order to accommodate the expansion. For the respondents that plan to increase their swine enterprise, 11.5 percent plan on spending more than $500,000 in the next 2 years while another 21.5 percent plan to spend between $100,001 and $500,000.



In general, older farmers are less likely to make large investments in capital items. Almost three-quarters of participants (i.e. 71.1%) older than 55 years of age indicated that they will spend less than $5,000 on capital in the next 2 years. Incorporated farms, both family and business, will be more active investors in the industry. Of the family corporations, 8.9 percent plan to spend more than $250,000 and 10.9 percent of business corporations will also spend this amount. The majority of sole proprietors (i.e. 90.8%) will spend less than $25,000. Medium and high debt farms will be more likely to make significant investments than low debt farms. In fact, 6.2 percent of medium debt farms and 7.8 percent of high debt farms plan to invest more than $250,000 in the next 2 years compared to only 1.8 percent of low debt farms. In summary, the majority of respondents plan to maintain their swine operations at their current sizes. Large farms will be the most likely to further increase in size during the next two years.



6.0 CONCLUDING REMARKS

Ontario’s pig industry is continuing to change. There are fewer farms and they are becoming larger and more specialized over time. A total of 2,199 people participated in the survey, a response rate of 86.6 percent, and 82.2 percent of respondents indicated that they had pigs at the time of the survey. Participants older than 50 years of age represented 37.1 percent of respondents while only 8.3 percent of participants were younger than 31. Sole proprietorships were the most common business structure (i.e. 43.4% of respondents) but family corporations have become more common with 23 percent of farms reporting this business structure, up from 15% of participants in a similar survey conducted in 1999. Farrow to finish production systems are operated by 58.5 percent of respondents followed at a distance by finishing operations for 28 percent of participants. Farm size varied and one third of respondents own less than 100 acres while 21 percent own more than 300 acres. However, nearly 37 percent of all respondents have access to greater than 300 acres for the purposes of manure application. Just over one-half of respondents (i.e. 52.6%) reported that they have completed an Environmental Farm Plan and 29 percent have completed a Nutrient Management Plan. Nutrient Management Plans were more likely to be completed on large farms in order to comply with Provincial regulations. Inventory numbers provided by survey respondents represented just over 2.9 million pigs or 80% of the Statistics Canada July 1 inventory estimate. Participants indicated that they plan to sell about 1.4 million SEW piglets, 1 million weaner pigs, 5.1 million market hogs and 170,000 other pigs during 2006 for a total of about 7.7 million pigs. Although 74 percent of respondents plan to stay the same size during the next two years, 13 percent plan to increase, 3 percent plan to decrease and 10 percent plan to exit the industry. In terms of total farm sales, 11.3 percent of respondents reported that they had very small farms (i.e. less than $50,000 in total sales) and they accounted for less than 1 percent of the pig inventory. In 1999 the small farms accounted for 20 percent of respondents and 2.3 percent of the inventory. An indication that farm size is increasing is very large farms with more than $1 million in total sales represented 12.7 percent of respondents and 63 percent of the pig inventory in 2006 compared to 4.8 percent of respondents and 37 percent of inventory in 1999. Total farm assets have grown with nearly 13 percent of respondents reporting more than $3 million in total assets in 2006 versus only 3 percent of respondents who had this amount in 1999. Over half of the respondents (i.e. 51.4%) reported that they had low farm debt levels and 12.3 percent said they had high debt. During the next 2 years about 80 percent of participants plan to spend less than $25,000 on new capital investment.



Almost one-quarter of respondents indicated that they have off-farm employment and 43 percent of those that have off-farm employment income reported that their pay is greater than $35,000 per year before tax and other deductions. The amount of personal income that comes from the swine enterprise varied widely from very little to most of their income.

6.1 Young vs Older Operators

The survey results indicate that a large part of Ontario’s pig industry is comprised of older farmers. In fact, 37 percent of all respondents reported that they were older than 50 years of age (older farmers) compared to the 8 percent that were younger than 31 (young farmers). 30 percent of young farmers have small businesses with less than $100,000 in total farm sales but another 35 percent have medium-sized businesses with sales between $100,000 and $250,000. In the next 2 years 20 percent of young farmers plan to increase the size of their swine business. Debt levels for the young farmers is evenly split between the three debt level categories of low, medium and high debt. As these young farmers grow and invest in their swine businesses they will assume more debt. Older farmers on the other hand reported that about one-third of them have small farms but there is another 24.2 percent that have more than $500,000 in sales. As for the future, 15.9 percent will exit the business in the next 2 years while only 7.3 percent plan to increase the size of their swine business. Older farmers tend to have lower farm debt levels with 65.3 percent indicating low debt. These farmers have had the opportunity to pay down their debt.

6.2 Business Ownership

As the size of the business increases often so does the complexity of the business structure. Sole proprietors are still the most common business structure but the frequency of partnerships and corporations (both family and business) have increased since 1999. Sole proprietors tend to be small to medium size farm operations and 69.3 percent had total farm sales less than $250,000. Three quarters of sole proprietors plan to stay the same size during the next couple of years and 12.9 percent expect that they will exit the industry completely. 90.8 percent of sole proprietors will spend less than $25,000 on capital items in the near future. Low debt levels are found on 59.5 percent of farms operated as sole proprietors. One half of business corporations are very large farms with sales in excess of $1 million. These farms are committed to the industry and 27 percent of them plan to increase the size of their swine enterprise in the next 2 years and 10.9 percent plan capital investments worth more than $250,000. Nearly 60 percent of business corporations have total farm assets worth more than $1.5 million and 66.3 percent have medium or high levels of debt.



6.3 Farm Size Many differences exist between small farms (i.e. farms with less than $100,000 in total farm sales) and large farms (i.e. farms with greater than $500,000 in sales). Small farms are typically organized as sole proprietors with 65.2 percent having this structure and 23.7 percent are partnerships. Nearly three-quarters of small farms (i.e. 72.7%) indicated that they have low debt and this may be partly attributable to the older age of many respondents in this category. Some of these participants will be retiring in the near future and 16.3 percent of small farm respondents indicated that they will leave the industry in the next 2 years. There were 12.6 percent of small farms who reported that they plan to increase the size of their swine enterprise in the next 2 years. Small farm respondents are more likely to report that they have off-farm employment income with 36 percent reporting this to be the case. About half (i.e. 49.2%) of the small farm respondents reported that income from the swine enterprise made up less than 20 percent of their total personal income. More than half of the large farms were corporations (i.e. 48% family corporations, 13.1% business corporations) and large farms as a group are the most likely to invest in their swine businesses and increase in size in the next 2 years. 18 percent of large farms said they plan to increase in size and 20.9 percent plan to invest more than $100,000 in new capital. Three-quarters of the large farms have medium to high levels of debt but this will be necessary to carry larger inventories and finance the growth of their farms. Only 15.2% of respondents from large farms reported that they have off-farm employment income and 47 percent of participants indicated that more than 80 percent of their total personal income comes from the swine enterprise.

6.4 Off-farm Employment Income

There were 23.2 percent of all survey respondents who indicated that they have off-farm employment income. These respondents come from a wide range of farm sizes and the main decision makers are a wide variety of ages. Small farms (with less than $100,000 in sales) had a higher frequency of owners working off the farm with 36 percent reporting that this was the case. High salaries for off-farm employment were found on all sizes of farms, not just on small farms as might be expected.

6.5 Summary

The trend to fewer but larger farms is evident in Ontario’s pig industry. The proportion of small farms has decreased from 1996 to 2006 while the proportion of large farms has increased during this time frame. Large farms control a growing percentage of Ontario’s pig inventory. In the future these large farms will continue to invest in their businesses while small farms will leave the industry. Young farmers will not be sufficient in numbers to replace



retiring farmers but they show enthusiasm and commitment for the industry and are more likely to grow their swine businesses.



Appendix A

Survey Form and Letters

120 MAIN STREET EAST • RIDGETOWN • ONTARIO • CANADA • N0P 2C0 • 519 674-1500 • FAX 519 674-1515 www.ridgetownc.uoguelph.ca

June 1, 2006 Dear Producer:

You Could Win $250!!!! We need your input and participation. Here is what to do.

1) Everyone is asked to complete the goldenrod coloured survey. If this survey is completed and returned to Ridgetown College by June 23, 2006, your name will be entered in a draw to win $250. The winner’s name will be publicized in July. It is important to include your name on this survey so we will know who has participated.

2) If you are a market hog producer also complete the questionnaire on the green coloured

paper. If you do not sell market hogs, you do not need to complete this survey.

3) Return the completed survey(s) in the postage-paid envelope provided by June 23, 2006. Follow-up phone calls will be made to those producers who do not respond by mail.

The surveys will take only a few minutes to fill out, yet they will provide valuable information to the industry. Also, if you participate promptly you could win $250! We appreciate your co-operation with this important project and thank you for participating. Best Regards, Ken McEwan College Professor Ridgetown College, University of Guelph Ph: (519) 674-1531

ONTARIO PORK

Ontario Pork, 655 Southgate Drive, Guelph, Ontario N1G 5G6 Telephone: (519) 767-4600 Fax: (519) 829-1769 Website: www.ontariopork.on.ca

June 1, 2006

To Ontario swine producers,

At Ontario Pork, we continually strive to make business decisions that are relevant to the entire membership.

To this end, enclosed is a survey being conducted by Ridgetown College - University of Guelph on behalf of Ontario Pork that has been sent to all Ontario producers requesting accurate information on the swine industry.

Information gathered from this survey will be used to help guide Ontario Pork through the decision-making process, ensuring long-term viability for the Ontario hog industry. Personal information collected is confidential and only industry averages will be shared.

A second survey has been included for all market hog producers to gauge interest in having hogs sold to the United States on either direct contracts or dollar in/dollar out contracts settled in U.S. funds.

It is important that everyone participate in order to get the most accurate information possible. To ensure everyone’s opinion is received, non-respondents will receive a reminder mailing and be contacted by representatives from Ridgetown College via telephone.

Our industry is continually faced with new challenges, changing market demands and a changing membership. Thank you for your support in helping Ontario Pork adapt and change to meet the needs of this diverse industry.

If you have questions regarding the surveys, please contact Ken McEwan, Ridgetown College -University of Guelph at (519) 674-1531 or [email protected].

Sincerely,

Curtiss Littlejohn, Chair Ontario Pork


June 19, 2006 Dear Producer: Over the past two weeks you should have received two surveys that Ontario pig producers are being asked to complete. If you have already completed the surveys, thank you. If you have not completed the surveys we would appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to do so. We need your participation to help ensure we have the best information possible. Here is what to do.

4) Everyone is asked to complete the goldenrod coloured survey. If this survey is completed and returned to Ridgetown College by June 23, 2006, your name will be entered in a draw to win $250. The winner’s name will be publicized in July. It is important to include your name on this survey so we will know who has participated.

5) If you are a market hog producer also complete the questionnaire on the green coloured

paper. If you do not sell market hogs, you do not need to complete this survey.

6) Return the completed survey(s) in the postage-paid envelope provided by June 23, 2006. Follow-up phone calls will be made to those producers who do not respond by mail.

You still have time to return your completed surveys and have your name entered into the draw for $250. Thank you for your participation in this important project. Best Regards, Ken McEwan College Professor Ridgetown College, University of Guelph Ph: (519) 674-1531


July 28, 2006 Dear Producer: We are conducting a survey on behalf of Ontario Pork and according to our records we have not received your response. This is an important survey because it will provide accurate and timely information on the Ontario swine industry that will assist Ontario Pork with making decisions and setting policy. Our goal is to have a 100% response rate. Enclosed you will find a survey form and a postage paid return envelope. Please complete the survey and return it to Ridgetown College as soon as possible. Even if you do not own pigs please indicate this on the survey and send it to Ridgetown College. Thank you for your participation. Best Regards, Ken McEwan College Professor Ridgetown College, University of Guelph Ph: (519) 674-1531



Appendix B

Summary of Results



List of Data Sets: A. Results From All Survey Respondents B. Decision Maker By Age

C. Ownership Type D. Type of Production System

E. Debt Level

F. Farm Size – Staying the Same G. Farm Size – Increasing H. Farm Size – Decreasing I. Farm Size – Leaving the Industry J. Total Farm Sales K. Number of Sows L. Results from Non-Owners of Pigs



Results From All Survey Respondents

Note: The results shown reflect the response rate for each question.

People that Own Pigs 1790 82.2% Number of People that Have:People that Don't Own Pigs 387 17.8% Fax 802 44.8%

Email 373 20.8%

Section B: Demographics Section C: Inventory LevelsAge of Main Decision Maker Current Inventory Levels

< 25 43 2.5% Total Number of Boars 5,719 25 - 30 101 5.8% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 295,554 31 - 35 123 7.1% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 326,732 36 - 40 193 11.1% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 660,480 41 - 45 334 19.2% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 763,765 46 - 50 300 17.2% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 861,625 51 - 55 246 14.1% Total Pigs 2,913,875 > 55 400 23.0%

Total Number of Pigs Sold in 2005:Main Type of Business Organization SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,198,599

Sole Proprietor 759 43.4% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 1,002,153 Partnership 495 28.3% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 260,498 Family Corporation 403 23.1%Business Corporation 88 5.0% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 2 0.1% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,387,989

Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 1,023,652 Number of Seedstock Suppliers 76 4.3% Market hogs 5,086,092

Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 170,241 Main Swine Production Systems Total 7,667,974

Farrow to Finish 1017 58.5%Farrow to Early Wean (approx. 12lbs.) 48 2.8% Plans for the Next 2 YearsFarrow to Wean (approx. 50lbs.) 98 5.6% Increase by: <5% 33 2.0%Nursery 8 0.5% 5-10% 78 4.7%Wean to Finisher (12-25lbs to market) 81 4.7% 11-20% 54 3.2%Finisher (50lbs to market) 485 27.9% 21-50% 27 1.6%

>50% 27 1.6%Number of Tillable Acres Owned Decrease by: <5% 9 0.5%

< 100 577 33.0% 5-10% 12 0.7%100 - 200 590 33.7% 11-20% 13 0.8%201 - 300 213 12.2% 21-50% 12 0.7%> 300 370 21.1% >50% 10 0.6%

Stay the Same Size 1230 73.7%Total Acres Available for Manure Application Leave the Industry 163 9.8%

< 100 378 21.7%100 - 200 454 26.0% Sow Numbers for the Next 2 Years201 - 300 267 15.3% Increase by: <5% 39 3.7%> 300 644 36.9% 5-10% 54 5.1%

11-20% 40 3.8%Number of Participants that completed 21-50% 15 1.4%

a Nutrient Management Plan 498 28.8% >50% 12 1.1%Decrease by: <5% 12 1.1%

Number of Participants that have completed 5-10% 5 0.5%an Environmental Farm Plan 905 52.6% 11-20% 5 0.5%

21-50% 5 0.5%Main Sources of Market Information >50% 47 4.4%

Internet 289 19.7% Stay the Same Size 830 78.0%Radio 216 14.8%Newspaper 517 35.3% Section D: FinancialMagazine 278 19.0% Total Gross Farm SalesOther 164 11.2% < $50,000 186 11.3%

$50,000 - $100,000 196 11.9%% of Total Feed Used that is Home-Grown $100,001 - $250,000 424 25.8%

0% 257 15.0% $250,001 - $500,000 392 23.9%1 - 20% 204 11.9% $500,001 - $1,000,000 235 14.3%21 - 40% 183 10.7% > $1,000,000 209 12.7%41 - 60% 288 16.8%61 - 80% 398 23.2% % of Farm Sales that are Swine Related81 - 100% 382 22.3% < 20% 220 13.2%

20 - 40% 336 20.1%% Total Feed Purchased that is Complete Feed 41 - 60% 303 18.1%

0% 489 28.5% 61 - 80% 353 21.1%1 - 20% 706 41.2% 81 - 100% 458 27.4%21 - 40% 103 6.0%41 - 60% 81 4.7% Fair Market Value of Total Farm Assets61 - 80% 60 3.5% < $100,000 44 2.8%81 - 100% 275 16.0% $100,001 - $500,000 285 18.0%

$500,001 - $1,000,000 531 33.6%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 254 16.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 266 16.8%> $3,000,000 201 12.7%



Results From All Survey Respondents

Section D: Financial (cont'd)% of Farm Assets that are Swine Related

< 20% 491 29.8%20 - 40% 435 26.4%41 - 60% 291 17.7%61 - 80% 200 12.2%81 - 100% 229 13.9%

Frequency of Farm Debt LevelLow (< 33% debt) 838 51.4%Medium (33% - 66% debt) 592 36.3%High (> 66% debt) 201 12.3%

Amount of Capital Investment in Previous 2 Years< $5,000 819 52.0%$5,000 - $25,000 387 24.6%$25,001 - $100,000 177 11.2%$100,001 - $250,000 88 5.6%$250,001 - $500,000 46 2.9%> $500,000 59 3.7%

Amount of Capital Investment in Next 2 Years< $5,000 842 55.5%$5,000 - $25,000 389 25.7%$25,001 - $100,000 170 11.2%$100,001 - $250,000 52 3.4%$250,001 - $500,000 29 1.9%> $500,000 34 2.2%

# Participants that Have Off-Farm Employment 390 23.2%# Participants that Don't Have Off-Farm Employment 1292 76.8%

Number of Participants with Off-farm EmploymentIncome Greater than $35,000/year 164 42.8%

Number of Participants with Off-farm EmploymentIncome Less than $35,000/year 219 57.2%

% of Total Personal Income From Swine Enterprise< 20% 451 28.3%20 - 40% 317 19.9%41 - 60% 224 14.0%61 - 80% 222 13.9%81 - 100% 381 23.9%

Section E: Non-OwnersFor Non-Owners of Pigs

Contract Farrow to Early Wean 9 8.3%Contract Nursery 27 24.8%Contract Finisher 73 67.0%

Planning to Own Animals in Next 2 Years 82 23.6%Do Not Plan to Own Animals 265 76.4%





Email 4 9.3%


< 25 43 100.0% Total Number of Boars 76 25 - 30 0 0.0% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 1,974 31 - 35 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 2,317 36 - 40 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 1,805 41 - 45 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 13,413 46 - 50 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 15,972 51 - 55 0 0.0% Total Pigs 35,557 > 55 0 0.0%

Total Number of Pigs Sold in 2005:Main Type of Business Organization SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 10,400

Sole Proprietor 24 55.8% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 2,377 Partnership 9 20.9% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 935 Family Corporation 8 18.6%Business Corporation 2 4.7% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 16,600

Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 3,650 Number of Seedstock Suppliers 0 0.0% Market hogs 86,322

Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 594 Main Swine Production Systems Total 107,166


>50% 3 7.3%Number of Tillable Acres Owned Decrease by <5% 0 0.0%

< 100 30 71.4% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 6 14.3% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 2 4.8% 21-50% 1 2.4%> 300 4 9.5% >50% 0 0.0%




a Nutrient Management Plan 8 19.0% >50% 0 0.0%Decrease by <5% 0 0.0%








$500,001 - $1,000,000 11 28.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 2 5.3%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 3 7.9%> $3,000,000 0 0.0%

Results From Decision Maker Less Than 25 Years Old



Results From Decision Maker Less Than 25 Years Old (page 2)


< 20% 13 33.3%20 - 40% 7 17.9%41 - 60% 3 7.7%61 - 80% 6 15.4%81 - 100% 10 25.6%















Email 10 9.9%




Sole Proprietor 48 48.0% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 149,030 Partnership 25 25.0% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 11,614 Family Corporation 21 21.0%Business Corporation 6 6.0% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 21,150


Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 8,897 Main Swine Production Systems Total 363,579



< 100 57 57.0% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 29 29.0% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 3 3.0% 21-50% 3 3.1%> 300 11 11.0% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 45 45.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 5 5.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 8 8.2%> $3,000,000 10 10.2%

Results From Decision Maker 25 to 30 Years Old



Results From Decision Maker 25 to 30 Years Old (page 2)


< 20% 25 25.8%20 - 40% 27 27.8%41 - 60% 20 20.6%61 - 80% 15 15.5%81 - 100% 10 10.3%















Email 20 16.3%









< 100 58 47.2% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 42 34.1% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 8 6.5% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 15 12.2% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 51 44.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 16 13.8%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 13 11.2%> $3,000,000 12 10.3%






< 20% 28 23.3%20 - 40% 28 23.3%41 - 60% 36 30.0%61 - 80% 13 10.8%81 - 100% 15 12.5%















Email 29 15.0%







Farrow to Finish 111 58.4%Farrow to Early Wean (approx. 12 7 3.7% Plans for the Next 2 YearsFarrow to Wean (approx. 50lbs.) 16 8.4% Increase by<5% 4 2.2%Nursery 1 0.5% 5-10% 7 3.8%Wean to Finisher (12-25lbs to mar 9 4.7% 11-20% 9 4.9%Finisher (50lbs to market) 46 24.2% 21-50% 5 2.7%

>50% 2 1.1%Number of Tillable Acres Owned Decrease b<5% 0 0.0%

< 100 71 37.6% 5-10% 2 1.1%100 - 200 67 35.4% 11-20% 1 0.5%201 - 300 21 11.1% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 30 15.9% >50% 1 0.5%


< 100 51 27.3%100 - 200 45 24.1% Sow Numbers for the Next 2 Years201 - 300 23 12.3% Increase by<5% 5 3.9%> 300 68 36.4% 5-10% 7 5.4%


a Nutrient Management Plan 58 30.9% >50% 0 0.0%Decrease b<5% 0 0.0%







0% 38 20.3% 61 - 80% 36 19.9%1 - 20% 88 47.1% 81 - 100% 57 31.5%21 - 40% 11 5.9%41 - 60% 11 5.9% Fair Market Value of Total Farm Assets61 - 80% 6 3.2% < $100,000 2 1.1%






< 20% 41 22.9%20 - 40% 49 27.4%41 - 60% 36 20.1%61 - 80% 25 14.0%81 - 100% 28 15.6%















Email 72 21.6%


< 25 0 0.0% Total Number of Boars 1,152 25 - 30 0 0.0% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 70,029 31 - 35 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 81,142 36 - 40 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 163,371 41 - 45 334 100.0% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 217,758 46 - 50 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 269,612 51 - 55 0 0.0% Total Pigs 803,064 > 55 0 0.0%



Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 115,772 Number of Seedstock Suppliers 14 4.2% Market hogs 1,411,336




< 100 111 33.3% 5-10% 2 0.6%100 - 200 101 30.3% 11-20% 2 0.6%201 - 300 48 14.4% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 73 21.9% >50% 1 0.3%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 88 29.3%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 69 23.0%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 56 18.7%> $3,000,000 38 12.7%






< 20% 87 27.9%20 - 40% 77 24.7%41 - 60% 58 18.6%61 - 80% 38 12.2%81 - 100% 52 16.7%















Email 69 23.0%









< 100 73 24.4% 5-10% 2 0.7%100 - 200 96 32.1% 11-20% 2 0.7%201 - 300 41 13.7% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 89 29.8% >50% 3 1.1%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 91 34.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 37 13.8%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 60 22.4%> $3,000,000 43 16.0%






< 20% 64 23.4%20 - 40% 77 28.2%41 - 60% 51 18.7%61 - 80% 37 13.6%81 - 100% 44 16.1%









Contract Farrow to Early Wean 0 #DIV/0!Contract Nursery 0 #DIV/0!Contract Finisher 0 #DIV/0!

Planning to Own Animals in Next 2 Years 0 #DIV/0!Do Not Plan to Own Animals 0 #DIV/0!





Email 60 24.4%









< 100 59 24.2% 5-10% 1 0.4%100 - 200 93 38.1% 11-20% 6 2.6%201 - 300 29 11.9% 21-50% 4 1.7%> 300 63 25.8% >50% 1 0.4%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 69 30.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 45 19.8%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 44 19.4%> $3,000,000 32 14.1%






< 20% 74 31.5%20 - 40% 68 28.9%41 - 60% 36 15.3%61 - 80% 28 11.9%81 - 100% 29 12.3%















Email 61 15.3%









< 100 114 28.6% 5-10% 5 1.4%100 - 200 147 36.9% 11-20% 2 0.5%201 - 300 60 15.1% 21-50% 3 0.8%> 300 77 19.3% >50% 4 1.1%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 100 29.2%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 50 14.6%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 45 13.1%> $3,000,000 45 13.1%

Results From Decision Maker Greater Than 55 Years Old



Results From Decision Maker Greater Than 55 Years Old (page 2)


< 20% 153 40.9%20 - 40% 97 25.9%41 - 60% 49 13.1%61 - 80% 35 9.4%81 - 100% 40 10.7%















Email 71 9.4%









< 100 304 40.3% 5-10% 6 0.8%100 - 200 305 40.4% 11-20% 2 0.3%201 - 300 79 10.5% 21-50% 3 0.4%> 300 67 8.9% >50% 5 0.7%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 294 43.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 94 13.9%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 53 7.8%> $3,000,000 25 3.7%

Results From Sole Proprietor




< 20% 261 37.0%20 - 40% 213 30.2%41 - 60% 111 15.7%61 - 80% 57 8.1%81 - 100% 63 8.9%















Email 89 18.0%









< 100 160 32.5% 5-10% 3 0.6%100 - 200 184 37.4% 11-20% 6 1.3%201 - 300 66 13.4% 21-50% 3 0.6%> 300 82 16.7% >50% 2 0.4%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 173 38.5%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 83 18.5%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 82 18.3%> $3,000,000 39 8.7%

Results From Partnership




< 20% 132 28.6%20 - 40% 120 26.0%41 - 60% 91 19.7%61 - 80% 55 11.9%81 - 100% 64 13.9%















Email 125 31.0%









< 100 77 19.1% 5-10% 2 0.5%100 - 200 75 18.6% 11-20% 3 0.8%201 - 300 62 15.4% 21-50% 6 1.6%> 300 189 46.9% >50% 3 0.8%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 47 13.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 62 17.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 108 29.8%> $3,000,000 110 30.4%

Results From Family Corporation




< 20% 81 21.1%20 - 40% 90 23.4%41 - 60% 78 20.3%61 - 80% 69 18.0%81 - 100% 66 17.2%













Results From Business Corporation



Email 42 47.7%









< 100 31 37.3% 5-10% 1 1.1%100 - 200 20 24.1% 11-20% 2 2.3%201 - 300 4 4.8% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 28 33.7% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 12 15.6%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 11 14.3%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 21 27.3%> $3,000,000 25 32.5%



Results From Business Corporation (page 2)


< 20% 9 11.5%20 - 40% 9 11.5%41 - 60% 8 10.3%61 - 80% 17 21.8%81 - 100% 35 44.9%













Results From Farrow to Finish Operations



Email 185 18.2%


< 25 13 1.3% Total Number of Boars 4,713 25 - 30 57 5.7% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 214,568 31 - 35 77 7.7% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 238,456 36 - 40 111 11.1% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 437,076 41 - 45 209 20.8% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 486,570 46 - 50 189 18.8% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 565,391 51 - 55 135 13.4% Total Pigs 1,946,774

> 55 213 21.2%Total Number of Pigs Sold in 2005:

Main Type of Business Organization SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 179,416 Sole Proprietor 410 40.8% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 348,487 Partnership 304 30.2% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 173,346 Family Corporation 248 24.7%Business Corporation 43 4.3% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 191,235





< 100 329 32.4% 5-10% 5 0.5%100 - 200 358 35.3% 11-20% 5 0.5%201 - 300 117 11.5% 21-50% 6 0.6%

> 300 210 20.7% >50% 5 0.5%Stay the Same Size 715 75.1%

Total Acres Available for Manure Application Leave the Industry 82 8.6%< 100 217 21.5%

100 - 200 281 27.8% Sow Numbers for the Next 2 Years201 - 300 146 14.5% Increase by: <5% 32 3.6%

> 300 365 36.2% 5-10% 41 4.6%11-20% 30 3.4%

Number of Participants that completed 21-50% 15 1.7%a Nutrient Management Plan 297 29.6% >50% 10 1.1%

Decrease by: <5% 10 1.1%Number of Participants that have completed 5-10% 4 0.5%

an Environmental Farm Plan 539 53.9% 11-20% 4 0.5%21-50% 3 0.3%

Main Sources of Market Information >50% 38 4.3%Internet 162 19.1% Stay the Same Size 700 78.9%Radio 96 11.3%Newspaper 324 38.3% Section D: FinancialMagazine 171 20.2% Total Gross Farm SalesOther 94 11.1% < $50,000 75 7.9%





$500,001 - $1,000,000 338 36.6%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 138 15.0%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 157 17.0%> $3,000,000 121 13.1%




< 20% 205 21.6%20 - 40% 285 30.0%41 - 60% 188 19.8%61 - 80% 133 14.0%81 - 100% 139 14.6%















Email 15 31.3%


< 25 2 4.3% Total Number of Boars 301 25 - 30 4 8.5% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 47,761 31 - 35 3 6.4% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 49,115 36 - 40 7 14.9% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 3,824 41 - 45 6 12.8% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 120 46 - 50 10 21.3% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 406 51 - 55 7 14.9% Total Pigs 101,527 > 55 8 17.0%


Sole Proprietor 11 22.9% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 23,436 Partnership 17 35.4% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 9,983 Family Corporation 15 31.3%Business Corporation 5 10.4% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,049,284

Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 7,310 Number of Seedstock Suppliers 1 2.1% Market hogs 880




< 100 24 50.0% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 8 16.7% 11-20% 1 2.2%201 - 300 5 10.4% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 11 22.9% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 14 32.6%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 8 18.6%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 7 16.3%> $3,000,000 12 27.9%

Results From Farrow to Early Wean Operations




< 20% 2 4.3%20 - 40% 7 15.2%41 - 60% 9 19.6%61 - 80% 11 23.9%81 - 100% 17 37.0%













Results From Farrow to Wean Operations



Email 19 19.4%









< 100 38 39.2% 5-10% 1 1.1%100 - 200 31 32.0% 11-20% 1 1.1%201 - 300 12 12.4% 21-50% 1 1.1%> 300 16 16.5% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 31 33.3%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 10 10.8%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 10 10.8%> $3,000,000 11 11.8%




< 20% 33 33.7%20 - 40% 19 19.4%41 - 60% 22 22.4%61 - 80% 10 10.2%81 - 100% 14 14.3%















Email 21 25.9%









< 100 23 28.4% 5-10% 1 1.3%100 - 200 26 32.1% 11-20% 2 2.6%201 - 300 9 11.1% 21-50% 2 2.6%> 300 23 28.4% >50% 1 1.3%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 13 18.3%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 16 22.5%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 18 25.4%> $3,000,000 9 12.7%

Results From Wean to Finish Operations




< 20% 21 28.0%20 - 40% 16 21.3%41 - 60% 8 10.7%61 - 80% 9 12.0%81 - 100% 21 28.0%













Results From Finish Operations



Email 86 17.7%


< 25 24 5.0% Total Number of Boars 28 25 - 30 23 4.8% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 708 31 - 35 31 6.5% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 1,588 36 - 40 46 9.6% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 22,667 41 - 45 89 18.6% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 149,245 46 - 50 65 13.6% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 166,446 51 - 55 69 14.4% Total Pigs 340,682 > 55 131 27.4%

Total Number of Pigs Sold in 2005:Main Type of Business Organization SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 525

Sole Proprietor 247 51.4% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 37,035 Partnership 121 25.2% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 30,332 Family Corporation 91 18.9%Business Corporation 21 4.4% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 1 0.2% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 600





< 100 151 31.7% 5-10% 3 0.7%100 - 200 155 32.5% 11-20% 4 0.9%201 - 300 67 14.0% 21-50% 3 0.7%> 300 104 21.8% >50% 3 0.7%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 131 31.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 75 17.8%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 68 16.1%> $3,000,000 42 10.0%




< 20% 221 49.0%20 - 40% 106 23.5%41 - 60% 58 12.9%61 - 80% 32 7.1%81 - 100% 34 7.5%















Email 132 15.8%









< 100 298 35.7% 5-10% 7 0.9%100 - 200 312 37.4% 11-20% 5 0.6%201 - 300 91 10.9% 21-50% 7 0.9%> 300 133 15.9% >50% 4 0.5%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 300 38.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 127 16.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 98 12.4%> $3,000,000 66 8.4%

Results From Low Debt Level



Results From Low Debt Level (page 2)


< 20% 316 38.5%20 - 40% 234 28.5%41 - 60% 133 16.2%61 - 80% 71 8.7%81 - 100% 66 8.0%















Email 138 23.3%









< 100 164 27.8% 5-10% 3 0.5%100 - 200 173 29.3% 11-20% 7 1.2%201 - 300 78 13.2% 21-50% 4 0.7%> 300 175 29.7% >50% 4 0.7%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 163 28.6%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 89 15.6%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 127 22.3%> $3,000,000 100 17.6%

Results From Medium Debt Level



Results From Medium Debt Level (page 2)


< 20% 127 21.7%20 - 40% 150 25.7%41 - 60% 117 20.0%61 - 80% 88 15.1%81 - 100% 102 17.5%















Email 53 26.4%









< 100 71 35.3% 5-10% 1 0.5%100 - 200 62 30.8% 11-20% 1 0.5%201 - 300 29 14.4% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 39 19.4% >50% 1 0.5%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 53 27.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 37 19.5%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 41 21.6%> $3,000,000 33 17.4%

Results From High Debt Level



Results From High Debt Level (page 2)


< 20% 32 16.2%20 - 40% 38 19.3%41 - 60% 36 18.3%61 - 80% 39 19.8%81 - 100% 52 26.4%















Email 230 18.7%




Sole Proprietor 534 43.9% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 730,014 Partnership 336 27.6% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 158,031 Family Corporation 281 23.1%Business Corporation 65 5.3% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 1 0.1% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,023,885





< 100 409 33.6% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 416 34.2% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 135 11.1% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 258 21.2% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 382 34.1%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 175 15.6%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 193 17.2%> $3,000,000 136 12.1%

Results From Stay the Same Size




< 20% 319 27.6%20 - 40% 334 28.9%41 - 60% 216 18.7%61 - 80% 134 11.6%81 - 100% 151 13.1%















Email 60 26.5%









< 100 63 28.3% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 68 30.5% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 29 13.0% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 63 28.3% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 55 25.8%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 37 17.4%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 49 23.0%> $3,000,000 40 18.8%

Results From Increase Size of Operation




< 20% 42 19.4%20 - 40% 48 22.1%41 - 60% 45 20.7%61 - 80% 43 19.8%81 - 100% 39 18.0%













Results From Increase Size of Operation <5%



Email 8 24.2%









< 100 12 36.4% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 6 18.2% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 5 15.2% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 10 30.3% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 6 19.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 5 16.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 6 19.4%> $3,000,000 9 29.0%




< 20% 11 33.3%20 - 40% 7 21.2%41 - 60% 6 18.2%61 - 80% 7 21.2%81 - 100% 2 6.1%















Email 25 32.1%









< 100 18 23.7% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 27 35.5% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 9 11.8% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 22 28.9% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 18 24.3%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 17 23.0%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 16 21.6%> $3,000,000 11 14.9%

Results From Increase Size of Operation 5% to 10%




< 20% 18 23.7%20 - 40% 16 21.1%41 - 60% 11 14.5%61 - 80% 15 19.7%81 - 100% 16 21.1%















Email 12 22.2%









< 100 17 31.5% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 14 25.9% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 8 14.8% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 15 27.8% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 14 26.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 10 19.2%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 11 21.2%> $3,000,000 9 17.3%





< 20% 6 11.8%20 - 40% 10 19.6%41 - 60% 13 25.5%61 - 80% 12 23.5%81 - 100% 10 19.6%















Email 7 25.9%









< 100 8 29.6% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 12 44.4% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 1 3.7% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 6 22.2% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 11 45.8%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 2 8.3%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 6 25.0%> $3,000,000 3 12.5%





< 20% 6 23.1%20 - 40% 6 23.1%41 - 60% 5 19.2%61 - 80% 2 7.7%81 - 100% 7 26.9%















Email 6 22.2%









< 100 5 19.2% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 8 30.8% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 5 19.2% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 8 30.8% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 4 16.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 3 12.0%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 9 36.0%> $3,000,000 5 20.0%

Results From Increase Size of Operation >50%




< 20% 1 4.2%20 - 40% 6 25.0%41 - 60% 9 37.5%61 - 80% 5 20.8%81 - 100% 3 12.5%















Email 14 24.6%









< 100 17 29.8% 5-10% 12 21.4%100 - 200 13 22.8% 11-20% 13 23.2%201 - 300 17 29.8% 21-50% 12 21.4%> 300 10 17.5% >50% 10 17.9%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 17 34.7%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 13 26.5%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 3 6.1%> $3,000,000 8 16.3%

Results From Decrease Size of Operation




< 20% 20 38.5%20 - 40% 11 21.2%41 - 60% 7 13.5%61 - 80% 6 11.5%81 - 100% 8 15.4%















Email 1 11.1%


< 25 0 0.0% Total Number of Boars 25 25 - 30 0 0.0% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 382 31 - 35 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 522 36 - 40 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 786 41 - 45 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 887 46 - 50 4 44.4% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 735 51 - 55 1 11.1% Total Pigs 3,337 > 55 4 44.4%


Sole Proprietor 2 22.2% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 290 Partnership 5 55.6% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 355 Family Corporation 2 22.2%Business Corporation 0 0.0% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 200

Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 330 Number of Seedstock Suppliers 1 11.1% Market hogs 5,660




< 100 5 55.6% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 3 33.3% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 1 11.1% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 0 0.0% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 4 44.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 1 11.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 0 0.0%> $3,000,000 1 11.1%

Results From Decrease Size of Operation <5%




< 20% 3 33.3%20 - 40% 2 22.2%41 - 60% 2 22.2%61 - 80% 1 11.1%81 - 100% 1 11.1%





Number of Participants with Off-farm EmploymentIncome Greater than $35,000/year 0 #DIV/0!

Number of Participants with Off-farm EmploymentIncome Less than $35,000/year 0 #DIV/0!









Email 3 25.0%



Total Number of Pigs Sold in 2005:Main Type of Business Organization SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) -

Sole Proprietor 6 50.0% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 6,164 Partnership 3 25.0% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 899 Family Corporation 2 16.7%Business Corporation 1 8.3% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) -





< 100 4 33.3% 5-10% 12 100.0%100 - 200 4 33.3% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 2 16.7% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 2 16.7% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 4 36.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 3 27.3%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 0 0.0%> $3,000,000 2 18.2%

Results From Decrease Size of Operation 5% to 10%




< 20% 7 58.3%20 - 40% 0 0.0%41 - 60% 1 8.3%61 - 80% 2 16.7%81 - 100% 2 16.7%















Email 5 38.5%




Sole Proprietor 2 15.4% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 9,483 Partnership 6 46.2% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 825 Family Corporation 3 23.1%Business Corporation 2 15.4% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 12,500





< 100 1 7.7% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 3 23.1% 11-20% 13 100.0%201 - 300 6 46.2% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 3 23.1% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 3 27.3%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 3 27.3%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 2 18.2%> $3,000,000 3 27.3%





< 20% 3 25.0%20 - 40% 5 41.7%41 - 60% 1 8.3%61 - 80% 0 0.0%81 - 100% 3 25.0%















Email 3 25.0%


< 25 1 9.1% Total Number of Boars 33 25 - 30 3 27.3% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 801 31 - 35 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 603 36 - 40 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 3,960 41 - 45 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 4,160 46 - 50 0 0.0% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 6,839 51 - 55 4 36.4% Total Pigs 16,396 > 55 3 27.3%


Sole Proprietor 3 25.0% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 526 Partnership 3 25.0% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 447 Family Corporation 6 50.0%Business Corporation 0 0.0% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) -

Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 60 Number of Seedstock Suppliers 0 0.0% Market hogs 32,132




< 100 4 33.3% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 0 0.0% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 5 41.7% 21-50% 12 100.0%> 300 3 25.0% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 3 27.3%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 2 18.2%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 1 9.1%> $3,000,000 2 18.2%





< 20% 4 40.0%20 - 40% 0 0.0%41 - 60% 3 30.0%61 - 80% 1 10.0%81 - 100% 2 20.0%















Email 2 20.0%




Sole Proprietor 5 50.0% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 1,200 Partnership 2 20.0% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 650 Family Corporation 3 30.0%Business Corporation 0 0.0% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) -





< 100 2 20.0% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 3 30.0% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 3 30.0% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 2 20.0% >50% 10 100.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 3 42.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 4 57.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 0 0.0%> $3,000,000 0 0.0%

Results From Decrease Size of Operation >50%




< 20% 3 33.3%20 - 40% 4 44.4%41 - 60% 0 0.0%61 - 80% 2 22.2%81 - 100% 0 0.0%















Email 22 13.5%









< 100 55 35.3% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 66 42.3% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 22 14.1% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 13 8.3% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 55 41.7%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 21 15.9%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 9 6.8%> $3,000,000 6 4.5%

Results From Leave the Industry




< 20% 75 52.1%20 - 40% 26 18.1%41 - 60% 13 9.0%61 - 80% 10 6.9%81 - 100% 20 13.9%















Email 14 7.5%




Sole Proprietor 119 64.7% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 3,466 Partnership 43 23.4% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 2,241 Family Corporation 19 10.3%Business Corporation 2 1.1% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 1 0.5% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) -





< 100 113 62.1% 5-10% 1 0.6%100 - 200 60 33.0% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 4 2.2% 21-50% 1 0.6%> 300 5 2.7% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 41 24.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 4 2.4%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 0 0.0%> $3,000,000 2 1.2%

Results From Total Farm Sales Less Than $50,000



Results From Total Farm Sales Less Than $50,000 (page 2)


< 20% 103 57.2%20 - 40% 30 16.7%41 - 60% 22 12.2%61 - 80% 13 7.2%81 - 100% 12 6.7%













Results From Total Farm Sales $50,000 to $100,000



Email 12 6.1%









< 100 90 46.2% 5-10% 2 1.1%100 - 200 83 42.6% 11-20% 1 0.5%201 - 300 16 8.2% 21-50% 1 0.5%> 300 6 3.1% >50% 1 0.5%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 66 36.1%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 15 8.2%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 4 2.2%> $3,000,000 0 0.0%



Results From Total Farm Sales $50,000 to $100,000 (page 2)


< 20% 84 44.0%20 - 40% 65 34.0%41 - 60% 21 11.0%61 - 80% 8 4.2%81 - 100% 13 6.8%















Email 48 11.3%









< 100 169 39.9% 5-10% 3 0.7%100 - 200 180 42.5% 11-20% 3 0.7%201 - 300 49 11.6% 21-50% 3 0.7%> 300 26 6.1% >50% 5 1.2%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 240 58.4%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 66 16.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 25 6.1%> $3,000,000 6 1.5%






< 20% 140 34.1%20 - 40% 125 30.4%41 - 60% 79 19.2%61 - 80% 39 9.5%81 - 100% 28 6.8%















Email 93 23.7%









< 100 117 30.1% 5-10% 3 0.8%100 - 200 137 35.2% 11-20% 4 1.0%201 - 300 66 17.0% 21-50% 4 1.0%> 300 69 17.7% >50% 1 0.3%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 157 41.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 105 28.0%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 66 17.6%> $3,000,000 21 5.6%






< 20% 97 25.1%20 - 40% 115 29.8%41 - 60% 77 19.9%61 - 80% 52 13.5%81 - 100% 45 11.7%















Email 63 26.8%









< 100 33 14.0% 5-10% 1 0.5%100 - 200 67 28.5% 11-20% 2 0.9%201 - 300 36 15.3% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 99 42.1% >50% 1 0.5%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 18 8.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 54 24.0%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 116 51.6%> $3,000,000 34 15.1%

Results From Total Farm Sales $500,001 to $1,000,000



Results From Total Farm Sales $500,001 to $1,000,000 (page 2)


< 20% 37 16.0%20 - 40% 54 23.4%41 - 60% 47 20.3%61 - 80% 43 18.6%81 - 100% 50 21.6%















Email 95 45.5%









< 100 21 10.1% 5-10% 1 0.5%100 - 200 22 10.6% 11-20% 3 1.5%201 - 300 27 13.0% 21-50% 2 1.0%> 300 137 66.2% >50% 1 0.5%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 3 1.5%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 9 4.5%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 54 27.0%> $3,000,000 131 65.5%

Results From Total Farm Sales Greater Than $1,000,000



Results From Total Farm Sales Greater Than $1,000,000 (page 2)


< 20% 19 9.4%20 - 40% 37 18.2%41 - 60% 38 18.7%61 - 80% 39 19.2%81 - 100% 70 34.5%















Email 24 5.6%









< 100 192 45.2% 5-10% 1 0.2%100 - 200 169 39.8% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 38 8.9% 21-50% 2 0.5%> 300 26 6.1% >50% 2 0.5%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 173 44.6%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 33 8.5%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 16 4.1%> $3,000,000 8 2.1%

Results From Less Than 50 Sows



Results From Less Than 50 Sows (page 2)


< 20% 177 43.8%20 - 40% 140 34.7%41 - 60% 59 14.6%61 - 80% 15 3.7%81 - 100% 13 3.2%















Email 33 12.4%









< 100 104 39.2% 5-10% 3 1.2%100 - 200 98 37.0% 11-20% 3 1.2%201 - 300 29 10.9% 21-50% 2 0.8%> 300 34 12.8% >50% 2 0.8%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 124 51.0%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 44 18.1%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 26 10.7%> $3,000,000 12 4.9%

Results From 50 to 100 Sows



Results From 50 to 100 Sows (page 2)


< 20% 50 19.9%20 - 40% 87 34.7%41 - 60% 53 21.1%61 - 80% 38 15.1%81 - 100% 23 9.2%















Email 51 28.2%









< 100 49 27.1% 5-10% 3 1.7%100 - 200 68 37.6% 11-20% 2 1.1%201 - 300 27 14.9% 21-50% 2 1.1%> 300 37 20.4% >50% 1 0.6%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 60 35.5%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 48 28.4%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 43 25.4%> $3,000,000 8 4.7%






< 20% 8 4.7%20 - 40% 46 27.2%41 - 60% 46 27.2%61 - 80% 34 20.1%81 - 100% 35 20.7%















Email 60 36.1%









< 100 25 15.1% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 44 26.5% 11-20% 1 0.6%201 - 300 27 16.3% 21-50% 1 0.6%> 300 70 42.2% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 13 8.8%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 28 18.9%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 66 44.6%> $3,000,000 40 27.0%






< 20% 6 3.9%20 - 40% 22 14.5%41 - 60% 41 27.0%61 - 80% 39 25.7%81 - 100% 44 28.9%















Email 19 28.8%









< 100 10 15.2% 5-10% 0 0.0%100 - 200 10 15.2% 11-20% 0 0.0%201 - 300 8 12.1% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 38 57.6% >50% 0 0.0%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 3 4.9%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 3 4.9%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 16 26.2%> $3,000,000 37 60.7%

Results From 501 to 1,000 Sows



Results From 501 to 1,000 Sows (page 2)


< 20% 3 4.8%20 - 40% 7 11.1%41 - 60% 7 11.1%61 - 80% 18 28.6%81 - 100% 28 44.4%















Email 32 54.2%


< 25 0 0.0% Total Number of Boars 759 25 - 30 4 6.9% Total Number of Sows/Gilts 142,214 31 - 35 1 1.7% Total Number Pigs < 10lbs 133,746 36 - 40 10 17.2% Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs 235,900 41 - 45 8 13.8% Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs 221,788 46 - 50 13 22.4% Total Number Pigs > 130lbs 268,022 51 - 55 9 15.5% Total Pigs 1,002,429 > 55 13 22.4%


Sole Proprietor 7 11.9% Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) 407,308 Partnership 7 11.9% Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) 76,647 Family Corporation 27 45.8%Business Corporatio 18 30.5% Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 0.0% SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) 1,056,100





< 100 9 15.8% 5-10% 1 1.8%100 - 200 8 14.0% 11-20% 1 1.8%201 - 300 6 10.5% 21-50% 0 0.0%> 300 34 59.6% >50% 1 1.8%












$500,001 - $1,000,000 2 3.8%$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 2 3.8%$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 5 9.6%> $3,000,000 42 80.8%

Results From Greater Than 1,000 Sows



Results From Greater Than 1,000 Sows (page 2)


< 20% 1 1.8%20 - 40% 5 8.9%41 - 60% 10 17.9%61 - 80% 11 19.6%81 - 100% 29 51.8%















Email 37 9.6%


< 25 0 #DIV/0! Total Number of Boars - 25 - 30 0 #DIV/0! Total Number of Sows/Gilts - 31 - 35 0 #DIV/0! Total Number Pigs < 10lbs - 36 - 40 0 #DIV/0! Total Number Pigs 10-45lbs - 41 - 45 0 #DIV/0! Total Number Pigs 46-130lbs - 46 - 50 0 #DIV/0! Total Number Pigs > 130lbs - 51 - 55 0 #DIV/0! Total Pigs - > 55 0 #DIV/0!


Sole Proprietor 0 #DIV/0! Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) - Partnership 0 #DIV/0! Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) - Family Corporation 0 #DIV/0!Business Corporation 0 #DIV/0! Total Number of Pigs to Sell in 2006:Co-operative 0 #DIV/0! SEW pigs (approx. 12lbs) -

Weaner pigs (approx. 50lbs) - Number of Seedstock Suppliers 0 #DIV/0! Market hogs -

Other pigs (i.e. culls, offsorts, etc.) - Main Swine Production Systems Total -

Farrow to Finish 0 #DIV/0!Farrow to Early Wean (approx. 12lbs.) 0 #DIV/0! Plans for the Next 2 YearsFarrow to Wean (approx. 50lbs.) 0 #DIV/0! Increase by: <5% 0 #DIV/0!Nursery 0 #DIV/0! 5-10% 0 #DIV/0!Wean to Finisher (12-25lbs to market) 0 #DIV/0! 11-20% 0 #DIV/0!Finisher (50lbs to market) 0 #DIV/0! 21-50% 0 #DIV/0!

>50% 0 #DIV/0!Number of Tillable Acres Owned Decrease by <5% 0 #DIV/0!

< 100 0 #DIV/0! 5-10% 0 #DIV/0!100 - 200 0 #DIV/0! 11-20% 0 #DIV/0!201 - 300 0 #DIV/0! 21-50% 0 #DIV/0!> 300 0 #DIV/0! >50% 0 #DIV/0!

Stay the Same Size 0 #DIV/0!Total Acres Available for Manure Application Leave the Industry 0 #DIV/0!

< 100 0 #DIV/0!100 - 200 0 #DIV/0! Sow Numbers for the Next 2 Years201 - 300 0 #DIV/0! Increase by: <5% 0 #DIV/0!> 300 0 #DIV/0! 5-10% 0 #DIV/0!

11-20% 0 #DIV/0!Number of Participants that completed 21-50% 0 #DIV/0!

a Nutrient Management Plan 0 #DIV/0! >50% 0 #DIV/0!Decrease by <5% 0 #DIV/0!

Number of Participants that have completed 5-10% 0 #DIV/0!an Environmental Farm Plan 0 #DIV/0! 11-20% 0 #DIV/0!

21-50% 0 #DIV/0!Main Sources of Market Information >50% 0 #DIV/0!

Internet 0 #DIV/0! Stay the Same Size 0 #DIV/0!Radio 0 #DIV/0!Newspaper 0 #DIV/0! Section D: FinancialMagazine 0 #DIV/0! Total Gross Farm SalesOther 0 #DIV/0! < $50,000 0 #DIV/0!

$50,000 - $100,000 0 #DIV/0!% of Total Feed Used that is Home-Grown $100,001 - $250,000 0 #DIV/0!

0% 0 #DIV/0! $250,001 - $500,000 0 #DIV/0!1 - 20% 0 #DIV/0! $500,001 - $1,000,000 0 #DIV/0!21 - 40% 0 #DIV/0! > $1,000,000 0 #DIV/0!41 - 60% 0 #DIV/0!61 - 80% 0 #DIV/0! % of Farm Sales that are Swine Related81 - 100% 0 #DIV/0! < 20% 0 #DIV/0!

20 - 40% 0 #DIV/0!% Total Feed Purchased that is Complete Feed 41 - 60% 0 #DIV/0!

0% 0 #DIV/0! 61 - 80% 0 #DIV/0!1 - 20% 0 #DIV/0! 81 - 100% 0 #DIV/0!21 - 40% 0 #DIV/0!41 - 60% 0 #DIV/0! Fair Market Value of Total Farm Assets61 - 80% 0 #DIV/0! < $100,000 0 #DIV/0!81 - 100% 0 #DIV/0! $100,001 - $500,000 0 #DIV/0!

$500,001 - $1,000,000 0 #DIV/0!$1,000,001 - $1,500,000 0 #DIV/0!$1,500,001 - $3,000,000 0 #DIV/0!> $3,000,000 0 #DIV/0!

Results From Non-Owners of Pigs




< 20% 0 #DIV/0!20 - 40% 0 #DIV/0!41 - 60% 0 #DIV/0!61 - 80% 0 #DIV/0!81 - 100% 0 #DIV/0!

Frequency of Farm Debt LevelLow (< 33% debt) 0 #DIV/0!Medium (33% - 66% debt) 0 #DIV/0!High (> 66% debt) 0 #DIV/0!

Amount of Capital Investment in Previous 2 Years< $5,000 0 #DIV/0!$5,000 - $25,000 0 #DIV/0!$25,001 - $100,000 0 #DIV/0!$100,001 - $250,000 0 #DIV/0!$250,001 - $500,000 0 #DIV/0!> $500,000 0 #DIV/0!

Amount of Capital Investment in Next 2 Years< $5,000 0 #DIV/0!$5,000 - $25,000 0 #DIV/0!$25,001 - $100,000 0 #DIV/0!$100,001 - $250,000 0 #DIV/0!$250,001 - $500,000 0 #DIV/0!> $500,000 0 #DIV/0!

# Participants that Have Off-Farm Employment 0 #DIV/0!# Participants that Don't Have Off-Farm Employment 0 #DIV/0!



% of Total Personal Income From Swine Enterprise< 20% 0 #DIV/0!20 - 40% 0 #DIV/0!41 - 60% 0 #DIV/0!61 - 80% 0 #DIV/0!81 - 100% 0 #DIV/0!




Documents

Benchmarking the Ontario Pig Industry · The report “Benchmarking the Ontario Pig Industry” was made possible due to the generous financial support of Ontario Pork through funding