Hog prices poised to soar as deadly swine disease emerges in China

A serious threat to hog supplies emerged in August for China, the world’s largest pork consumer and home to more than half of the global population of the animals. That could fuel a bounceback in hog prices, which have dropped by nearly 30 percent year to date. China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs reported China’s first case of African swine fever, or ASF, on Aug. 3. The virus is highly contagious, and once infected, pigs usually die within two to 10 days. Humans aren’t susceptible to the disease. – MarketWatch Read more…