$26.68 Weaner Pig Breakeven as Cash-Traded Volume Surges

The weekly NutriQuest swine market report shows that weaner pig breakevens have dropped to $26.68, down from $33.19 last week. This decline indicates that a weaner purchased today would need to be marketed as a finished hog in January 2027 at the current prices.

The calculation assumes February 2027 lean hog futures for valuation and takes into account industry representative production costs for corn, soybean meal, and lean hogs. The current breakeven figure is $23.53 below the week's average cash price of $50.21.

Feed costs saw a decrease of $3.20 per head during the period, while February futures prices dropped by $4.63 compared to last week. For producers with empty facility space, the margin over variable costs is $52.79, representing the maximum price a buyer could pay to break even without considering fixed overhead.