Demand for pork at the consumer level for January-May was up 1.5 percent from 12 months earlier. Demand for both beef and broilers was down for this period compared to a year earlier. Beef was down 0.9 percent and broilers were down 5.3 percent.

Demand for live hogs for January-May was down nearly five percent. The weaker demand for live hogs was due to smaller exports of pork and wider marketing margins.

The U.S. per capita expenditure on pork for January-May at $28.29 deflated was up from $27.56 per capita in 2008. In current dollars, the January-May 2009 expenditure was $60.16, up from $58.84 a year earlier.

The average weight of barrows and gilts was down 1.9 pounds from a week earlier but up 3.6 pounds from a year earlier in Iowa-Minnesota. Barrow and gilt carcass weights under Federal Inspection for the four weeks ending June 27 averaged 4.25 pounds heavier than for the same weeks in 2008. For the week ending June 27, barrow and gilt carcass weights were three pounds per head above a year earlier.

Early weaned and all feeder pigs were steady to firm last week nationally. The price for ten-pound-basis pigs, 50-54 percent lean averaged $28.31. 40-pound-basis pigs average price was $21.54 per head. The formula price for the ten-pound basis pigs was $33.76 per head. The formula price for the 40-pound-basis pigs was $46.55 per head. The cash or negotiated price for ten pound pigs was $11.26 per head and the cash price for the 40-pound pigs was $20.36 per head.

The cash or negotiated live price Friday morning for barrows and gilts was steady to $1 per cwt. higher compared to last Friday. The weighted average negotiated carcass price Friday morning was $3.89 lower to $2.22 per cwt. higher compared to seven days earlier.

The live prices for select markets Friday morning were: Peoria $35 per cwt., Zumbrota, Minnesota, $38 per cwt. and interior Missouri $41 per cwt. The weighted average negotiated carcass prices by area Friday morning were: western Corn Belt $55.84 per cwt., eastern Corn Belt $55.12 per cwt., Iowa-Minnesota $55.84 per cwt. and nation $55.25 per cwt.

The cutout per cwt. of carcass Thursday afternoon at $57.93 per cwt. was up $4.16 per cwt. from a week earlier. Loins at $70.07 per cwt. were down $1.07 per cwt., Boston butts at $62.23 per cwt. were down $1.84 per cwt., hams at $49.35 per cwt. were up $14.13 per cwt. and bellies at $71.39 per cwt. were up $9.51 per cwt. from seven days earlier. Slaughter this week under Federal Inspection was estimated at 1.957 million head, down 9.3 percent from a year earlier.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Ron Plain or Glenn Grimes may write to them in care of this publication