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Nebraska’s hog numbers on the upswing

Things are looking up for Nebraska’s pork industry.

Nebraska Pork Producers Association president Russ Vering of Howells tells Brownfield, after several years of little or no growth, hog numbers in the state are increasing.

“In relation to the national growth of about two percent, Nebraska is up ten percent in pork numbers, which is really exciting to us,” Vering says. “We want to see our resources in Nebraska utilized to their fullest—and that means we need to grow the swine industry in Nebraska.”

Vering attributes the growth to several factors, including the lifting of a ban on packer ownership of hogs in 2016 and a more positive attitude among many county officials as to the value of livestock production.

“There are a lot of ways that we can enhance the state’s tax base, enhance income in small rural communities, bring kids back to the farm—all those things,” he says, “Grow-finish in our state, in the swine industry, is really important to us—and I think it’s a solution to a lot of problems that we have.”

In terms of total hog numbers, Nebraska ranks sixth in the U.S.

Vering spoke with Brownfield Tuesday at the Pork Producers annual meeting in Lincoln.

AUDIO: Russ Vering