Evaluating the contract swine finishing opportunity

Abstract

Increasing numbers of farmers, aspiring farmers and rural landowners are considering a contract hog finishing enterprise as a way to enter agriculture or to expand or diversify their current operation. This publication is in response to questions and issues raised by prospective producers and is intended to help with the decision process. Every person, opportunity and situation is different in one way or another, and the following discussion is more about helping you to ask the right questions than giving specific answers. Even if you have a substantial farming operation, the decision to enter contract production is one of the biggest decisions you will ever make. It involves a set of decisions related to farm business strategy, investment analysis and personal/family issues. Like any business venture, your satisfaction in the long run is more assured if you go in with both eyes open. The best possible situation for contracting firms and growers is that expectations conform to reality over the life of the contract and beyond.