Minnesota farmers trying to find markets for their hogs — and save their livelihoods

StarTribune.com ^ | 4/24/20 | Mike Hughlett

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

With Smithfield Foods' Sioux Falls pork plant closed by a COVID-19 outbreak, Minnesota hog farmer Greg Boerboom may face a grim choice.

The South Dakota plant had been scheduled this week to slaughter about 1,400 of Boerboom's pigs. Smithfield directed 25% of that shipment to another Smithfield plant in Illinois — with Boerboom paying the extra $1,500 in freight costs.

The remaining 850 hogs are in limbo. Boerboom is seeking a destination for them before they grow too big for market and thus face euthanization.

Over 3,000 healthy pigs were put down in Minnesota this week, and 200,000 more could soon follow.

"There's never been anything like this," Boerboom said. If idled pork plants don't open soon, "we are going to see multi­generational, longstanding [hog] farms not get through this financially."

Minnesota is the nation's third largest hog-producing state. And pork is critical to Minnesota's agricultural economy.

Up to 30% of the nation's pork-processing capacity is shuttered as COVID-19 cases have spread through factories.

JBS USA's big plant in Worthington, which processes 20,000 hogs a day, was indefinitely idled Monday. Major slaughterhouses in Iowa — also prime destinations for Minnesota-grown hogs — have been closed, too.

[cloudmountain]

I represent the Northern part of the EU. lol...full mutt.

The mutts are ALWAYS the smartest dawgs!

[mad_as_he$$]

;-)

[mad_as_he$$]

;-)