In 2020, youth have the option to decide at weigh-in if they want to take their market animals home.
By now you’ve heard the Sr. Fair Board recently passed a motion making the 2020 Jr. Fair market shows ‘partial terminal.’ In this case, that means only the Champion and Reserve Champion market beef, market swine, market lamb and market goat will be required to stay on the grounds and be harvested and inspected at the conclusion of the Fair. Aside from those 8 champions, all youth will be given the opportunity to take their market animals home at the conclusion of their shows. For those not choosing to take their animals home, packer bids will be secured same as in the recent past. The option to take market animals home is being allowed for 2020 only and is the direct result of disruption to livestock markets caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
While nearly all livestock markets were impacted by the disruption to the meat supply chain caused when packing house workers contracted coronavirus and plants were temporarily closed beginning in early spring, none were impacted as severely as the hog markets. Swine packing plant closures, followed by slow downs in processing caused by social distancing requirements implemented in packing plants have created a backlog of more than 1.5 million hogs that would have typically been marketed by this time. Without the benefit of having already contracted hogs for sale as most large-scale commercial producers do, today it’s difficult to even secure a bid to purchase hogs that originate from Fairs. Packer bids for Ohio Fair pigs this year have commonly ranged from 10 to 15 cents per pound, or roughly $25 to $40 total, per pig.
While offering this opportunity that allows our swine exhibitors some flexibility in marketing their pigs, the feeling was it should also be extended to all exhibitors this year. Market livestock species affected by this change include swine, beef, lamb, goat, and rabbit. Poultry and dairy feeders will continue to be handled much as they have in the past. As youth consider whether they will choose to take their market animal home, a number of factors should be carefully considered.
- While hog prices remain near the lows, prices for other market livestock have recovered significantly from lows experienced earlier in the year. Do your own market research before making the decision regarding the destination of your market animals.
- Most ‘custom kill’ packing houses are already booked well into next year. If you choose to take your market animal home with plans to later put it in the freezer, be sure you have the ability to get it harvested and processed.
- Taking female market livestock home with the intent of utilizing them for breeding stock should be deliberately considered. An animal that has been finished for a market show must be carefully managed in order that it might become a lifelong productive breeding female.
- When considering taking a market animal home with plans to exhibit it at other exhibitions, be sure the rules for that exhibition’s ownership and acquisition timelines can be accommodated.
- Dairy feeders, including the six that are sold through the sale, may accept or reject a packer bid that will be secured and handled as in the past. All dairy feeders will be released for home, or to the packer at the conclusion of their show.
- Poultry will be handled as they have in the past and will go home since no packer bid is secured for them.
The deadline for youth to make their decision whether to accept the packer bid or take their market animal home will be when they first reach the scales for check-in at the Fair. Packer bids are unlikely to be known prior to the time this choice must be made. This year it will be particularly difficult to secure packer bids until the number of animals being included for the bids is known.
Youth and their families are encouraged to do their ‘market research’ now and make their keep or sell marketing decision prior to arrival at the Fair. The decision to keep or sell will have no impact on making the sale, or the sale order. In this bizarre and different year, the goal has never been to discourage youth from marketing their animal as they have in the past, but to simply give them another option for this one year, only.
To learn more about how the supply chain issues originated that caused deflated prices and requests for custom animal harvest that have overwhelmed small packers, see this article that we published in the spring: Meat vs COVID-19; The good, the bad and the ugly of supply and demand
If you’re considering butchering an animal at home, visit this link to tap into several good information pieces from the OSU meat science faculty, including a free upcoming on-line presentation on the subject: What you should know before butchering on the farm