Live pork prices fell below $40 per hundredweight recently, hitting the lowest level since November 2009. The situation is simply the result of supply and demand factors, experts say.

"Abundant supplies of pork are easy to find," said Chris Hurt, ag economics professor at Purdue University.

Pork production is up 7 percent this year. The number of hogs slaughtered is up 8 percent, he noted. Finishing weights are down 1 percent.

Meanwhile, pork demand in international markets has been hurt by a strong U.S. dollar, said Lee Schulz, livestock economist with Iowa ...