Price Spreads for Pork

Excerpts from the report: This report analyzes the trend of prices and price spreads for pork at various stages in the marketing process during 1949-66, and discusses the factors responsible for the trend and their implications for producers and consumers. The examples included in this report of individual marketings of hogs and pork demonstrate that differences between live-hog costs and retail selling prices can vary greatly, yielding different returns from similar services at different times. To the livestock producer, these examples indicate that the timing of purchases and sales is an important factor affecting net returns. To the consumer, they show how the cost of marketing services--transportation, slaughtering, distribution, and retailing--affect the retail price of pork