Case Study: Hog Farming in North Carolina

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Case Study Hog Farming in North Carolina
growth of a billion dollar industry in the
1990s. Hog farming in North Carolina represents a
multi-billion dollar industry. Although hogs and
pigs have been a historical part of the state's
agriculture, it was in the 1990s
that the sector experienced exponential growth.
Within a decade, the hog population jumped from
around 2.6 million hogs in 1988 to over 8 million
hogs in 1997.
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Case Study Hog Farming in North Carolina
growth of a billion dollar industry in the
1990s. Hog farming in North Carolina represents a
multi-billion dollar industry. Although hogs and
pigs have been a historical part of the state's
agriculture, it was in the 1990s
that the sector experienced exponential growth.
Within a decade, the hog population jumped from
around 2.6 million hogs in 1988 to over 8 million
hogs in 1997. The increase in the total
population of hogs was accompanied by a decline
in the total number of hog farms. In 1986, there
were 15,000 hog farms in the state. By the year
2000, there were only 3,600 hog farms remaining.
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North Carolinas National Rank in Hog Farming
Currently, North Carolina ranks as the 2nd
largest hog farming state in the country, after
Iowa. Other leading hog farming states are
Minnesota and Illinois. Almost sixty percent of
the U.S. hog inventory is concentrated in these
four states. The majority of the hog industry in
NC is located in the southeastern region,
particularly in the counties of Duplin, Sampson,
Bladen, and Robeson.
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North Carolinas National Rank in Hog Farming
Currently, North Carolina ranks as the 2nd
largest hog farming state in the country, after
Iowa. Other leading hog farming states are
Minnesota and Illinois. Almost sixty percent of
the U.S. hog inventory is concentrated in these
four states. The majority of the hog industry in
NC is located in the southeastern region,
particularly in the counties of Duplin, Sampson,
Bladen, and Robeson.
Hog Farming Value Chain
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North Carolinas National Rank in Hog Farming
Currently, North Carolina ranks as the 2nd
largest hog farming state in the country, after
Iowa. Other leading hog farming states are
Minnesota and Illinois. Almost sixty percent of
the U.S. hog inventory is concentrated in these
four states. The majority of the hog industry in
NC is located in the southeastern region,
particularly in the counties of Duplin, Sampson,
Bladen, and Robeson.
Breeding/up to 80 lbs.
Then up to 300 lbs.
Hog Farming Value Chain
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Hogs live in metal confinement barns that have
holding cells. NC hogs produce about 9.5 million
tons of waste per year. The manure and urine
excreted by these hogs is stored in deeply dug
out earthen pits that are called lagoons.
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Hogs live in metal confinement barns that have
holding cells. NC hogs produce about 9.5 million
tons of waste per year. The manure and urine
excreted by these hogs is stored in deeply dug
out earthen pits that are called lagoons.
These lagoons can be as large as 10 acres in
surface area and 12 feet in depth. The liquid
from these lagoons, which is high in the
nitrogen, is used to fertilize the fields where
the hogs graze. Officials from the NC Pork
Producers Association claim that the use of
lagoons as a holding tank for the swine manure to
fertilize the fields is a "proven and effective
way to keep harmful chemicals and bacteria out of
water supplies." Studies done by North Carolina
State University in Raleigh indicate otherwise.
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A very large waste lagoon at a hog farm in North
Carolina. Source USDA
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Ohio Dept. of Agriculture draft Permit to
install a 2000 head hog farm
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Each red dot shows the location of a hog barn.
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The conventional wisdom about hog lagoons in NC
is that they are virtually leak proof. The idea
behind the lagoon is to have the heavier sludge
sink to the bottom and form a seal, preventing
any liquid from escaping through the ground. The
NC Division of Environmental Management testified
that "lagoons will effectively self-seal within
months with little or no groundwater
contamination, even in sandy, highly permeable
soils." However, one NC State University report
estimates that "as many as half of the existing
lagoonsperhaps hundredsare leaking badly enough
to contaminate groundwater."
The illustration at right shows the gently
rolling Coastal Plain not too far east of
Raleigh, with a rather sandy soil.  (UNC)
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The problems associated with lagoons on
sand-based soils presents an especially serious
problem in Eastern North Carolina, where sandy
soils and a high water table are extremely
susceptible to contamination of groundwater. The
majority of rural residents take their water from
shallow wells, and the effect on health this can
cause is disturbing. Nevertheless, lagoons alone
are not the only problem to groundwater
contamination.
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Key Actors and Organizations
The present 1995 regulations have not been
shown to be effective. The NC Department of
Water Quality does an inspection of each farm
once a year, and the NC Department of
Environmental Management does occasional
inspections. However, some claim that the
regulatory climate of the hog industry is almost
nonexistent. Fines are not significant enough to
provide the farms with incentive to change their
behavior, and the state government continues to
cut regulations. Former NC State Senator Murphy
has led the charge by passing a series of laws
advantageous to hog farms. He has sponsored and
passed bills for the hog industry that include
several tax exemptions.
Back to Table
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North Carolina Hog Waste Spills (Large) 1995-96
June 20, 1995 Bearskin Farm in Sampson County
dumped approximately 1 million gallons of waste
into a Cape Fear River tributary.
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North Carolina Hog Waste Spills (Large) 1995-96
June 20, 1995 Bearskin Farm in Sampson County
dumped approximately 1 million gallons of waste
into a Cape Fear River tributary. June 21,
1995 Oceanview Farms in Onslow County spilled 22
million gallons of hog waste, twice the size of
the Exxon Valdez oil spill, killing 15 million
fish and closing nearly 365,000 acres of coastal
wetlands to shellfishing.
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North Carolina Hog Waste Spills (Large) 1995-96
June 20, 1995 Bearskin Farm in Sampson County
dumped approximately 1 million gallons of waste
into a Cape Fear River tributary. June 21,
1995 Oceanview Farms in Onslow County spilled 22
million gallons of hog waste, twice the size of
the Exxon Valdez oil spill, killing 15 million
fish and closing nearly 365,000 acres of coastal
wetlands to shellfishing. August 8, 1995
Broadwater Farms in Brunswick County discharged 2
million gallons of hog waste into tributaries of
the Cape Fear River.
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North Carolina Hog Waste Spills (Large) 1995-96
June 20, 1995 Bearskin Farm in Sampson County
dumped approximately 1 million gallons of waste
into a Cape Fear River tributary. June 21,
1995 Oceanview Farms in Onslow County spilled 22
million gallons of hog waste, twice the size of
the Exxon Valdez oil spill, killing 15 million
fish and closing nearly 365,000 acres of coastal
wetlands to shellfishing. August 8, 1995
Broadwater Farms in Brunswick County discharged 2
million gallons of hog waste into tributaries of
the Cape Fear River. July 12, 1996 Rhodes
Livestock Farm in Craven County spilled 1.8
million gallons of hog waste into a small stream
that carried it to the Neuse River.
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These and other problems in the hog farming
industry led to tough investigative newspaper
articles. Investigative journalists Joby Warrick
and Pat Stith of the Raleigh based News and
Observer wrote a series on large hog farms in
North Carolina.
Joby Warrick, Melanie Sill, and Pat Stith accept
the Pulitzer Prize in Public Service Journalism
in 1996. (Mr. Warrick is now 2006 with the
Washington Post.)
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Additional Stages in North Carolinas Development
as a Hog Farming Power
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Additional Stages in North Carolinas Development
as a Hog Farming Power 1995North Carolina
Senate passes Bill 1080, the Swine Farm Siting
Act , requiring new swine houses or lagoons to be
located at least 1500 feet from an occupied
residence, at least 2500 feet from any school,
hospital, or church and at least 100 feet from
any property boundary.
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Additional Stages in North Carolinas Development
as a Hog Farming Power 1995North Carolina
Senate passes Bill 1080, the Swine Farm Siting
Act , requiring new swine houses or lagoons to be
located at least 1500 feet from an occupied
residence, at least 2500 feet from any school,
hospital, or church and at least 100 feet from
any property boundary. 1997The Clean Water
Responsibility Act, part of Bill 515, places a
moratorium on the construction of farms with more
than 250 hogs or the expansion of existing large
farms in the state of North Carolina.
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Additional Stages in North Carolinas Development
as a Hog Farming Power 1995North Carolina
Senate passes Bill 1080, the Swine Farm Siting
Act , requiring new swine houses or lagoons to be
located at least 1500 feet from an occupied
residence, at least 2500 feet from any school,
hospital, or church and at least 100 feet from
any property boundary. 1997The Clean Water
Responsibility Act, part of Bill 515, places a
moratorium on the construction of farms with more
than 250 hogs or the expansion of existing large
farms in the state of North Carolina.
1998North Carolina's hog population rises to
10 million from 2 million in 1992.
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Additional Stages in North Carolinas Development
as a Hog Farming Power 1995North Carolina
Senate passes Bill 1080, the Swine Farm Siting
Act , requiring new swine houses or lagoons to be
located at least 1500 feet from an occupied
residence, at least 2500 feet from any school,
hospital, or church and at least 100 feet from
any property boundary. 1997The Clean Water
Responsibility Act, part of Bill 515, places a
moratorium on the construction of farms with more
than 250 hogs or the expansion of existing large
farms in the state of North Carolina.
1998North Carolina's hog population rises to
10 million from 2 million in 1992. 1999Hurricane
Floyd hits North Carolina, flooding hog waste
lagoons and contaminating the water supply.
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1999Renewed moratorium on "lagoon-farms" there
are no limits on farms using environmentally
superior technologies.
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1999Renewed moratorium on "lagoon-farms" there
are no limits on farms using environmentally
superior technologies. 2003North Carolina Gov.
Mike Easley successfully calls for a four-year
extension of the moratorium on the construction
of hog farms in eastern NC.
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1999Renewed moratorium on "lagoon-farms" there
are no limits on farms using environmentally
superior technologies. 2003North Carolina Gov.
Mike Easley successfully calls for a four-year
extension of the moratorium on the construction
of hog farms in eastern NC.
How did this series of events come about? Jobs
are good but why this backpedaling by the NC
legislature? What went wrong?