Swine Industry http://www.murphybrownllc.com/ABOUT/AUDIO/index.html

Swine in NC

#2 Producer in the

country

Income in the state

is $1 billion per year

~9.5 million head

http://www.pigbusiness.co.uk/issues/destroying_small_farmers/

Trends of the industry

Farms are getting

fewer and larger

Most farmers grow

on contract to bigger

companies.

Trends lead to better

reproductive

(genetics) and feed

efficiency http://www.murphybrownllc.com/OPERATE/index.html

Vertical Integration

• Definition-two or more steps of production,

marketing, and processing are linked together

usually by contract between producers and

feed manufacturers or between producers and

processors or include all three.

• Example- a corporation such as Smithfield

Foods, Inc. purchases feeder hogs from a

producer and then raises the animals to a

market weight in their company owned finishing

house. Then they transport animals to the

slaughter house that is also owned by

Smithfield Foods, Inc.

Veritical Integration

Highly integrated

Farrow to Finish

Where the contract

growers come in

Farrow

Finish

Contract growers

Types of Swine Operations

• Sow- maintains sows for breeding, gestation and

farrowing. Manages piglets until they are weaned at

approximately 21 days.

• Nursery- manages piglets after they are weaned

until approximately 10 weeks or 50lbs.

Types of Swine Operations

• Grow-Finish- manages barrows and gilts until

they are ready for market.

• Farrow-to-Finish- manages a group of breeding

sows and maintains piglets to market weights.

Also known as complete sow and litter

operation.

• Commercial operation will typically house

animals in separate facilities to manage disease.

• Typical operation for a small scale producer

raising hogs for local markets.

Segments

Farrowing Operation

Farrowing Barn

2-4 weeks Nursery 3 months

40 - 100 lbs

Feeder Pigs

Growing/Finishing

Operation

3 months

~ 40 lbs 6 -8 months

240 -260

Market Hog

Life Cycle

3 months 3 weeks 3 days

~ 114 days

birth

5 months

puberty

Breed

~ 114 days

6 Months Farrow

~ 11 monhs

3 months 3 weeks 3 days

~ 114 days

birth

5 months

puberty

6 - 8 months

Slaughter

240 - 260 lbs

Processing Pork Products

• Finishing operations send animals to

processing facilities. In many cases the

finishing operation and the slaughterhouse are

vertically integrated.

• Pork is processed into primal cuts and

subprimal cuts. These products are sold to

retailers and foodservice companies.

• Some packing facilities sell subprimals to meat

processors who create value added products

such as ham, bacon, pre-cooked items,

sandwich meat, etc.

Fill In The Blank

• The gestation period of swine is __________ months, __________ weeks, and __________

days or just __________ days.

• The term used for swine giving birth is ___________________.

• At at the age of ____________________ pigs are moved to the nursery.

• After three months, pigs are _________ - _________ lbs or more and are called

____________ pigs.

• After leaving the nursery, pigs are the put into the ________________/________________

operation.

• The idea of more than one segment of the industry being owned by one person or company

is called _______________ _______________ also known in the swine world as

________________ to _________________.

• Replacement females are bred at _____________ months.

• Pigs are slaughtered at the age of __________ to __________ months.

• Two advantages of combining segments of the swine industry include better

_______________ and _______________ ________________.

• In NC, the swine industry is ___________ in the nation for production.

• Income in North Carolina for the swine industry is $___________________.

Short Answer

• Describe the function of a contract grower in the swine industry.

• Explain what all happens in a farrowing barn.

• What is a feeder pig?

• What is the current trend of swine farms in the U.S.?