Reuters — A 57-year-old man with terminal heart disease who made history as the first person to receive a genetically modified pig’s heart died Tuesday afternoon at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC), the hospital said. David Bennett received the transplant on Jan 7. His condition began deteriorating several days ago, the hospital said […] Read more

U.S. man with transplanted GM pig heart dies, hospital says

Slammed by a huge jump in costs, pork producers are ‘just hanging on’
It’s not just sky-high feed costs — rising bills for heat, freight, and medication have eaten up a hike in prices
Reading Time: 3 minutes Beleaguered hog farmers are finally getting paid more but the extra cash — and then some — is blowing out the door as costs soar. A year ago, it cost about $140 per month to house and feed a pig, said Mark Wipf, hog and feed manager for Lakeside Colony Farming Company, located east of […] Read more

Hog producer ‘profitability plunges,’ says Alberta Pork
Reading Time: < 1 minute It’s been one blow after another for the province’s hog producers, says Alberta Pork. “The past year has presented quite a few disruptions at every stage of the value chain,” Bijon Brown, the organization’s production economist, said in a release. The sharp rise in feed costs have been the biggest blow, but transportation disruptions, labour […] Read more

Pork industry looks ahead from turbulent 2021
Pork prices expected to stay elevated in 2022
MarketsFarm — Labour shortages caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, high feed costs and lower prices posed constant threats to Canada’s hog industry in 2021. Nevertheless, pork appears to be in a good spot entering 2022, according to two analysts. “2021 was not the best, but not the worst,” said Tyler Fulton, director of risk management […] Read more

India to allow imports of U.S. pork and products
Washington | Reuters — India has agreed to allow imports of U.S. pork and pork products into India, removing a longstanding barrier to U.S. agricultural trade, U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on Monday. “India’s agreement to allow U.S. pork imports for the first time is great news for U.S. […] Read more

Maryland man recovering after ‘breakthrough’ pig-heart transplant
Hog's genes edited to reduce rejection risk
Chicago | Reuters — A U.S. man with terminal heart disease was implanted with a genetically modified pig heart in a first-of-its-kind surgery, and three days later the patient is doing well, his doctors reported on Monday. The surgery, performed by a team at the University of Maryland Medicine, is among the first to demonstrate […] Read more

Swine fever found in wild boar in Italy
Reuters — African swine fever, a deadly hog disease, has been found in a wild boar in Italy’s Piedmont region, the regional government said in a statement on Friday. Tests confirmed the disease in a dead boar in Ovada, located about 120 km southwest of Milan in northern Italy, the statement said. African swine fever […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Live cattle futures drop on profit-taking; lean hogs fall
Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange live cattle futures fell on Thursday on profit-taking after a previous session rally resulted in several contracts hitting new highs, traders said. CME February live cattle settled down 0.750 cent at 139.975 cents per pound. Feeder cattle futures, which were supported by a slump in Chicago corn futures, […] Read more

U.S. livestock: CME livestock futures rise on supply concerns
Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange livestock futures climbed on Wednesday, as cash cattle prices firmed on concerns around meat supplies to meet anticipated demand going into next year, traders said. Cattle futures ended higher, as beef carcass cutout prices continued to firm and cash cattle traded higher, traders said. Cash cattle traded at […] Read more

U.S. livestock: Cattle futures rise on expectations of beef demand; hogs ease
Chicago | Reuters – Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures finished higher on Tuesday, as slaughter rates increased and carcass cutout values continued to firm, traders said. There is an expectation of beef prices continuing to firm and demand be strong going into the first quarter of 2022, said Doug Houghton, analyst with Brock Capital Management. […] Read more