Feeder pig enterprise

Abstract

"Does the feeder pig enterprise offer opportunity for higher farm income for Green Hills Area farm families who have only limited land and capital resources? University of Missouri agricultural economists, at the request of Green Hills Area leaders, made a detailed study of a north central Missouri farm's experience with feeder pig production over a six year period to answer this question. Results on production of 482 litters of feeder pigs on this farm showed a return to labor and management of $3.80 per hour of labor used in the enterprise. While this study is limited to one farm and one system of production, it does provide information useful for other Green Hills farm families in evaluating a feeder pig enterprise for their farms. The case study approach was used primarily because there were few producers in the area from which to gather data at the time the study was initiated. The case study approach also allows more detailed study of the resources available, the resources that are being used, and the problems encountered in developing the enterprise than would be possible in a broader study involving many different farms." --page 3