Swine Industry to Suffer Losses With Slower Line Speeds

At the end of next month, pork planting plants will need to slow down line speeds. A federal court invalidated a provision in the USDA’s swine inspection rules that allowed faster line speed. An analysis by Iowa State University Economist Dermot Hayes found this ruling will have a negative impact on all hog farms, but consequences are bigger for smaller operations. Packing plants will face capacity problems which reduces competition and the spot price for hogs. Hayes says the industry will face more than $83 million in lost income. The National Pork Producers Council is asking USDA to appeal the court ruling and pursue new fast-tracked rulemaking that accounts for the technology found in modern processing plants.