Hog barn expansion

[Guest]

And the ground pork smells just like the inside of a stinkin pig barn when you fry it

[grassfarmer]

And the ground pork smells just like the inside of a stinkin pig barn when you fry it

That's what I think when you read the story about this high quality product being shipped to discerning consumers in Japan - maybe a good reason to keep hog production separate (in a different country) from pork consumption - if they don't know what a hog barn smells like they won't associate it with the taste and smell of what they are eating!

[Jay-mo]

I probably shouldn't interrupt this bashing thread...but the hog industry has been a good thing for myself and my family.

[Braveheart]

I probably shouldn't interrupt this bashing thread...but the hog industry has been a good thing for myself and my family.

We had a hog operation for 18 years and it supported our family (wife and three kids). Barn was in our yard and yes sometimes there was odour. We had one quarter owned and rented one and most of the grain grown was fed to the pigs. It was our CWB buster at the time.

I understand what you're saying Jay-Mo and what I appreciate about yours is that you built the barn. You took the risk and while you might be contracted to a vertical integrator it's still yours and you and your family live here.

[grassfarmer]

I probably shouldn't interrupt this bashing thread...but the hog industry has been a good thing for myself and my family.

My intent wasn't to launch a bashing post but to discuss and hear others opinions on what is happening around here. If you are a hog producer do you see this model of foreign corporate ownership using US grown feed as offering value for Canadian farmers? If you are not aligned with this company do you consider their presumably increasing domination of the sector a threat to your hog production? Is there room for unlimited hog expansion in Canada based on an export market and if so what happens if there is a trade shut down like with Canola now - do you all suffer equally or does a company like Hylife suffer less than the rest of you because they are foreign owned - basically a foreign company producing the product for their consumers in our country?

[Jay-mo]

My intent wasn't to launch a bashing post but to discuss and hear others opinions on what is happening around here. If you are a hog producer do you see this model of foreign corporate ownership using US grown feed as offering value for Canadian farmers? If you are not aligned with this company do you consider their presumably increasing domination of the sector a threat to your hog production? Is there room for unlimited hog expansion in Canada based on an export market and if so what happens if there is a trade shut down like with Canola now - do you all suffer equally or does a company like Hylife suffer less than the rest of you because they are foreign owned - basically a foreign company producing the product for their consumers in our country?

In general, foreign or domestic ownership, I don't honestly know if it matters. They both need to be profitable in order to succeed. Local ownership may hang around longer if times get really lean, though.

I think the ship has pretty well sailed when it comes to independently raising hogs. There is so much volatility and risk in carrying the risk of capital, livestock and feed, that mostly Hutts and only a handful of others are still running independently.

As a grain farmer also, there's significant value in the manure from these barns. If I'm a farmer with a large chunk of cropland in a block, I'm talking to Hylife to drop a fertilizer factory in the middle of it.

[grassfarmer]

Thanks for your reply Jay-mo. Any guesses at what the fertilizer value coming out of a say 6000 head feeder barn in a year is?

[Jay-mo]

Thanks for your reply Jay-mo. Any guesses at what the fertilizer value coming out of a say 6000 head feeder barn in a year is?

6000 finisher site will likely cover 600 acres every year. A three or four year rotation for manure application seems to get the best results long term.
I have heard of everything from getting manure for free all the way to paying close to full retail for the stuff.
If you have an ideal location that a company wants to build on, you may be able to negotiate some excellent terms for the manure.

[Sheepwheat]

The hog barns in this area have been a great asset for the grain farmers. Selling feed grains at milling prices is a good thing. But of course we are not near us corn production, so though some does come up this way, very little does.

And there is room for hog farmers who are independent. But you have to think differently. Few on here get this, so I see little point in expounding, but it involves selling hanging hogs for 700 to 800 dollars each.

[phoenix64]

I am surprised and confused, grassy usually you’re much more inclusive, if it was Hutt’s that wanted to expand there would be no problem, foreign entities want to come in provide money and jobs to keep the economy rolling and suddenly you sound like you’re have issues with that hmmmm