The United States had 74.3 million hogs and pigs on September 1, 2026, down 2% from the same date last year but up 2% from June 1, according to the Hogs and Pigs report released by the National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Breeding stock totaled 5.87 million head, down 1% from last year and slightly lower than the previous quarter. Market hogs numbered 68.4 million head, down 2% from 2025 but up 2% from the second quarter.
The summer pig crop reached 34.5 million head between June and August, a 2% decline from the same period in 2025. Farmers farrowed 2.89 million sows during those months, down 3% from last year. Those sows represented 49% of the breeding herd.
Productivity showed improvement, with farms saving an average of 11.96 pigs per litter during the summer months, compared to 11.82 last year.
Looking ahead, producers plan to farrow 2.85 million sows from September through November, down 2% from last year and 2% from two years ago. Winter plans call for 2.80 million sows to farrow between December and February, up 2% from last year but down 1% from two years earlier.
Contract farming continued to grow, with operations managing more than 5,000 head now accounting for 56% of total inventory through contractees, up 4% from 2025.
The USDA revised previous estimates using updated slaughter data, death loss figures, and trade information. The June 2026 inventory was adjusted by 0.7%, while the March 2026 inventory saw a 1.0% revision.
