Farm-Scape is sponsored by Manitoba Pork Council and Sask Pork Play Audio Farm-Scape is a Wonderworks Canada production and is distributed courtesy of Manitoba Pork Council and Sask Pork.

Farm-Scape, Episode 1232

A livestock analyst with Manitoba Agriculture and Food says the latest figures from Statistics Canada suggest Canada's swine herd will continue to grow for at least the next year. Statistics Canada has released its April 1, 2003 inventory report for hogs.

Provincial Market Analysis and Statistics Branch Manager Janet Honey says figures related to the size of the Canadian sow herd suggest production is expanding in the east but shrinking in the west.

"I've been looking at the sow herd because I think that's a very good indicator of where production is going to be going in the next year of two. If we look at the Canadian herd as a whole the increase, year over year, was only two percent. Looking at the western provinces being affected by drought and increased feed costs, they've got the Alberta sow herd dropping by .5 percent. The Saskatchewan herd is down by almost 1.4 percent.

In Manitoba's case, our herd is up slightly from a year ago, 1.4 percent. Going into the eastern provinces Stats-Can is showing the Ontario sow herd is up by 6.6 percent and the Quebec herd up by 2.5 percent. In Manitoba's case I feel the numbers are under estimated. We have been building sow barns in the last three or four months so the impact of smaller hog operations going out of business has more than likely been offset by the new larger barns being built."

Honey says, whether the new barns are being built for weanling export or for farrow to finish operations, will ultimately impact pork production.

She says, if they are being built for weanling export, the expansion of the sow herd won't result in as much of an increase in pork processing. She says mandatory US Country of Origin Labeling may prompt more Canadian feeder barn construction but that is still uncertain.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.