CME December 2020 lean hogs with Bollinger (20,2) bands. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: CME lean hogs fall, cattle up on technical trading, profit-taking

Hogs 'stretched out technically last week'

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures slid on Monday on technical selling and profit-taking, as the trade began to question whether Chinese demand for U.S. pork will boom after rival supplier Germany confirmed a single case of African swine fever in a wild boar. U.S. pork packer margins eased but still were solid, […] Read more

CME December 2020 lean hogs with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. livestock: Lean hogs climb on bullish pork export prospects

Live cattle continue following hogs higher

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. lean hog futures closed higher on Friday for a second session on expectations of increased export demand for U.S. pork after rival supplier Germany confirmed a case of African swine fever in a wild boar. Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) October lean hog futures settled up 2.2 cents at 66.575 cents/lb. […] Read more


CBOT December corn with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

U.S. grains: Corn up as hog futures soar

Soybeans down on profit-taking

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures climbed to their highest in five months on Thursday as news of a swine disease in Germany fueled expectations of increased demand for U.S. pork and feed grains, traders said. Firm cash markets for corn ahead of the start of the U.S. Midwest harvest added support, along with […] Read more

(Zevei-Wenhui/iStock/Getty Images)

Swine fever found in Germany putting pork exports at risk

Country had been fencing off borders against wild boar

Berlin/Hamburg | Reuters — Germany confirmed on Thursday that African swine fever (ASF) had been found in a dead wild boar near its border with Poland, threatening pork exports to China from Europe’s biggest pork producer, which were worth US$1.2 billion last year. Authorities in the German state of Brandenburg quarantined a 15-km area around […] Read more


File photo of domestic hogs on a German farm. (FooTToo/iStock/Getty Images)

Germany reports first suspected case of African swine fever

German producers currently exporting pork to China

Berlin | Reuters — Germany’s ministry of food and agriculture said on Wednesday it had a suspected case of African swine fever (ASF) in a wild boar in the eastern state of Brandenburg. The suspected case concerned a wild boar carcass found near the German-Polish border. A sample of the carcass was being taken for […] Read more

An aerial view of a pig farm in Tauche, Germany.

Paradise lost looms for German farmers as swine fever nears

As swine fever is found in wild boar in Poland, many worry infected animals will cross the border

Reuters – The German state of Brandenburg has erected about 120 kilometres of electric fencing to prevent wild boars infected with African swine fever (ASF) from straying across the border from Poland and infecting its pig herd. Hans-Christian Daniels doesn’t think the barrier will work. “It looks rather inevitable that swine fever will come,” said […] Read more

File photo of a hog farmer with piglets in Poland. (Zuberka/iStock/Getty Images)

African swine fever spreads near German border

Paris | Reuters — Poland recorded 55 outbreaks of African swine fever in wild boar near the German border last month, the world animal health body said on Thursday, in a sign the deadly virus is spreading near one of the European Union’s biggest pork exporters. A report posted on the World Organization for Animal […] Read more



(AlexPro9500/iStock/Getty Images)

Sausage-loving Germans chew over meat tax plan

Berlin | Reuters — German lawmakers on Wednesday proposed raising the sales tax on meat to help protect the climate and improve animal welfare, kindling a debate in a country renowned for its love of sausages. Meat in Germany benefits from a reduced value added tax rate of seven per cent, and the idea is […] Read more