Lean hog futures experienced a decline on Wednesday, with losses ranging from 75 to 85 cents, though August futures increased by 7 cents before Thursday’s expiration. The USDA reported a national base hog price of $110.48, down $1.93, while the CME Lean Hog Index fell 18 cents to $109.84 as of August 11.
The USDA’s FOB plant pork cutout report indicated an increase of $1.80 to $116.50 per cwt. Although rib and ham prices dropped, other cuts rose, particularly the picnic and ham. USDA estimated a hog slaughter count of 478,000 head for Wednesday, bringing the weekly total to 1.44 million—68,000 more than last week but down 8,709 from the same week last year.
