Lean hog futures experienced mixed results on Wednesday, with front-month contracts rising between 37 to 97 cents, while back-month contracts fell by 20 to 55 cents. The national average base hog price increased by 24 cents to $78.03, and the CME Lean Hog Index rose to $83.98, up 14 cents from the previous day.
The USDA reported the FOB plant pork cutout value at $96.35 per cwt, an increase of $1.58. During Wednesday’s trading, an estimated 488,000 head of hogs were slaughtered, bringing the week’s total to 1.463 million head—1,000 head less than last week but up 16,438 head year-over-year. Significant futures prices included February hogs at $83.700, April hogs at $88.900, and May hogs at $92.675, showing respective increases of $0.500, $0.850, and $0.975.
