Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 6, 1990 TAG: 9007060648
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-5 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Because of a paucity of pig farmers in the commonwealth, only about 15 percent of the meat used for one of Virginia's most renowned agriculture products now come from within the state.
About 75 percent of the hog farmers dropped out of the business during the 1980s because of high feed costs, said Dave Kenyon, an Extension Service specialist and agriculture economist at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.
Most of the farmers grew their own corn for feed and were hurt by five droughts over the last decade, Kenyon said.
Stricter environmental regulations and encroaching residents who weren't crazy about hogs for neighbors also forced some producers out, said Ike Eller, an Extension Service animal scientist at Virginia Tech.
"There were a bunch of folks with older facilities and outdoor production who simply couldn't meet EPA and other regulatory agencies' standards for operations in most areas," Eller said.
Smithfield, the East Coast's largest pork packer, is looking for more native hogs, but Kenyon said their latest plan for enlisting Virginia producers might not be a popular one.
Robert Manly, executive vice president at Smithfield, said, "We probably get 40 percent of our hogs from North Carolina. We also get some from Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Ohio and Indiana."
Smithfield is trying to encourage more Virginians to raise hogs by setting up a contract finishing arrangement under which the company would supply the feed and young hogs and the farmers would tend the animals until they reached slaughter weight.
Virtually all chickens are produced under such a system, Kenyon said.
by CNB