Economic Impacts of Porcine Somatotropin on Midwest Hog Producers

Porcine Somatotropin (PST) administered to feeder pigs has been shown to increase feed efficiency, ratio of lean meat to carcass weight, and market weight. Three representative grain-hog farms in the Midwest were simulated for five years to estimate the economic incentives for adopting PST. Larger-scale operations garnered greater increases in income from PST adoption than small- and medium-scale operations that adopted PST. Without a carcass merit premium, however, the economic benefits from adoption are merely sufficient to cover the costs of adoption.