Hogs and Pigs Summary: The inventory of hogs and pigs on December 1, 1997, totaled 240,000 head,
unchanged from a year earlier, but 2 percent below December 1, 1995. Hogs for breeding on December 1
amounted to 35,000 head, down 4,000 head from the previous year. Market hogs, at 205,000 head, increased
2 percent from December 1, 1996. Sows farrowing during the December 1996 through May 1997 period
totaled 28,000 head, up 12 percent from the same period during 1996. During this same period, the pig crop
was estimated at 240,000 head, up 28 percent from the previous year. There were 26,000 sows that farrowed
during June through November, unchanged from the same period during 1996. The pig crop was estimated
at 225,000 head, up 9 percent from a year earlier.

The total value of hogs and pigs on December 1, 1997, amounted to $20.6 million, down 12 percent from the
previous year. Cash receipts from marketings totaled $64.8 million, up 30 percent from 1996. The average
price per 100 pounds was $52.40, compared with $51.70 the previous year.

The number of operations with hogs remained the same as 1996 after declining for several years. There were
3,000 hog operations in Mississippi during 1997, the same as 1996, but down 9 percent from 1995.