Big sky posted a miillion loss how much did agstability pay them?

[Hopperbin]

And at producing 500 thousand hogs per year the cost is 7 dollars 36 cents per hog. Now if they produce less hogs the cost of the debt rockets up. What to do? I do not think I would want to run a hog barn now.

[Hopperbin]

Tom at these current prices I am wanting to make a 100 thousand bushel sale. But I want to put an ad in or a demand after sale that I get paid every 3 loads. Then I will continue hauling I do not think this is out of line.

[wmoebis]

Is the price of feed too high or is it that they spend too much on medication, feed additives, growth hormones, sewer treatment/removal, trucking? How can they say all thier losses is from the price of feed? What about accountants and lawyers?

I think they should be compaining about other costs first. Feed is pretty important for fattening livestock.

[Hopperbin]

Thinkin they need higher pork prices

[grassfarmer]

HaHa indeed Tom - you think livestock producers
haven't needed risk management in the past? Saved I
guess by you giving away your grain for free.
Complete tosh - maybe you should speak to some of
the feedlot operators since BSE - they could tell you a
bit about risk management.

As for the hog situation high feed prices are maybe
the straw that broke the camels back but the
problems run deeper. Try looking further up the chain
and see what the processors are paying, what the
retailers are paying, what the consumer is paying and
what they think of the "hog barn" flavoured pork they
are buying. We retailed some recently that grossed
over $700 a hog with all the processing done and we
have a waiting list of consumers wanting to buy this
clean, outside reared quality pork.

[TOM4CWB]

Grassy,

UNtill the end of the CWB single desk, basically the cash market with prebuying options best served the livestock feeder.

Now the CWB does not distort the local market DOWN and prevent the arbitage of feed up to world values... prices are HIGHER.

So why not comb the earth... to find the highest feed grain prices/markets on the planet... and arbitage the feed market even higher in western Canada(NO Profit needed; better prices at the farm gate)?

Looks to me that the CWB is STILL not working for grain farmers in western Canada!

Still providing cheaper feed for you Grassy!

[ajl]

Better not gloat too much about the
disappearance of the livestock sector in
Western Canada Tom. Time is coming with a
lot of feed grain production and it will
be very difficult to export it all.
Today's higher grain prices are merely
the product of a supply side rally and
nothing else.

[Mufferaw]

Feed prices are the issue at this point and time for the feeding industry in general. Traditionally feed prices were in the 50-60% of total cost of production for a market hog - at today's prices they exceed 70%. Feed costs drive profitability - to think pork producers haven't driven other costs out of their systems in the past 5 years is absurb.

We live in a global market - one of the fundamental reasons the price pork producers receive doesn't go higher. That way imported ribs from Finland in the local Co-op are half the price of the Canadian ribs or Costco imports U.S. pork when the exchange tells them to do so. Most consumers look at the price not where it comes from.

There is definiely a market for local (pasture, organic,...) pigs. Pigs moved indoors because of things like Trichinosis where you needed to cook the crap out of pork to make sure everything was dead in it before you ate it. The average consumer won't pay $8.00/lb for a pork chop when the Co-op sells them for $2.50/lb.

[ASRG]

TOM: You might regret your glee with the demise of the hog barns and feedlots.
When you get that early August Frost,the wet late harvest, or that dry year when your grain isn't really up to snuff?
As the cost of moving your product sky rockets.....you might hope there was some old boy feeding some hogs or steers?
TOM, you really can't grow a lot of crops that aren't dependent on livestock? You don't live in Iowa or Florida........you shouldn't gloat over a one year "weather event" that drove feed prices higher?
Next year......who knows.....we might see $2/barley.....and you will be crying for the feedlots and hog barns that are gone!
You claim to be a Christian......start acting like one!

[FarmRanger]

Maybe what Tom was trying to say was that the
feeding industry was overbuilt with cheap grain
caused by the power of the single desk buyer of
our grain.  Farmers had no power to access better
priced markets (which incidentally have now come
to our door), and much more cheap grain was
made available to the feeders because of this
fact.

Feedlot operators may buy my #1 durum in the
future, but unlike in the past, it will be because
they had to pay the full market price for it. Never
again will it be because they merely matched the
price the CWB single desk buyer was paying.

[grassfarmer]

ASRG, I find that with the guys that try to shove
religion down others throats - they don't usually act
as religious/christian people are supposed to. They
wear it more like a badge to prove they are superior.

[TOM4CWB]

FarmRanger;

Well spoken.

Grassy... Bless you... calling us names does NOT change the facts nor history.

I took, and take no delight in the 'pain' livestock farmers face. We all knew (those of us who study the market) the longer the CWB distorted the grain market... the harder the transition would be back to fair market value grain prices.

Over production... prices fall... pain... none of which in any way I wanted nor am happy about.

We all would like a 'fair' price for our produce.

Cheers!