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Hard times on the hog farm
Eric AtkinsTransportation Reporter

This article was published more than 10 years ago. Some information may no longer be current.

The Canadian Press

High Canadian dollar

Canadian hog prices track those in the United States, and the strong currency has driven up the price for foreign buyers.

Rafal Gerszak For The Globe and Mail

Country of origin labelling

New segregation and labelling rules make the export of meat to the United States slower and expensive.

The Canadian Press

Swine flu

 

About 10 countries, including China and Russia, banned Canadian pork imports amid a 2009 outbreak of H1N1 flu, even though the virus is not passed by eating meat.
Reuters

Drought

 

Dry weather in much of the United States in 2011 and 2012 drove up prices for corn and other crops fed to hogs. Farmers reduced their herd sizes to cuts costs.

Chris Bolin for The Globe and Mail

Biofuels

 

The rise of the ethanol and biodiesel businesses has created a steady market for growers of corn and other grains and oil seeds, driving up prices of the main feed for livestock.