Noted and respected market analyst Dr. Glenn Grimes has retired, once again, from the University of Missouri.  Grimes retired from full-time work in 1986 but since has maintained a part-time relationship with the school.  Also, in 1993, Grimes began his service to the National Pork Producers Council serving as a consulting economist. His voice became familiar to many producers as he provided weekly market updates on radio stations across the nation.  

In 1970 Glenn Grimes began to document changes in the pork industry structure. Those original studies became the precursors for triennial surveys of hog producers' marketing and production practices. Working with others, Dr. Grimes was able to provide some important insights into producer sizes, market shares, technology adoption and business practices during the turbulent changes of the '90s and '00s.

Those surveys and resulting reports remain important as 2010 unfolds since they provide some of the only insights available regarding producers' viewpoints of various marketing contracts.  That topic will be addressed when the Departments of Agriculture and Justice investigate competition and concentration during workshops scheduled for this year.