The March South Dakota hog inventory is 10 percent higher than one year ago, As of March 1, there was 1.83 million hogs in the state. South Dakota State University Extension Swine Specialist Bob Thaler says cheap grain supplies, land availability and disease isolation attribute to the increase. The state is also prioritizing expansion. “Governors and state agricultural secretaries have helped put together livestock maps and plans for counties,” says Thaler. “Some counties have taken advantage of this.” Sunterra Farms, a Canadian company, is putting up nurseries and finishing barns in the state. Independent producers are growing, too. “When you look at rural South Dakota, everyone wants jobs and livestock operations can provide that.”
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