Trading was very quiet to start the week with most buyers and sellers sitting the market out today on lower energy and soybean oil futures prices. Sources did indicate lower bids for distiller’s corn oil on the weaker bean oil and diesel/heating oil prices. 

For the week ending March 19^th, 2022, hog slaughter is forecast at 2.475 million head, a 4.2 percent drop from 2021, a 7.6 percent decline from 2020, but a 2.3 percent rise from the prior week. According to the USDA Actual Slaughter Under Federal Inspection for February 26^th, average live weights are currently at 292 pounds, one pound over the respective period for 2021 and in-line with hog weights since the start of January. Over the next six weeks, hog slaughter is forecast to average 2.40 million head per week, 0.5 percent under than the prior six-week average. This hog…