Manitoba Pork Marketing Co-op said Friday it will put up $300,000 for a pool price rebate of 50 cents on each hog marketed through the co-op between Jan. 1 and July 31 this year.

Eligible hog producers can expect to receive their rebates by as early as Sept. 4, the co-op said. Normally such rebates are distributed at the end of the fiscal year, but the co-op said its directors agreed on an immediate rebate “given the financial duress the industry is presently under.”

“The rebate comes at a time when hog producers are facing losses of up to $50 on every hog marketed,” the co-op said in a release. “While not large, it does represent an amount equal to the marketing levy charged by the co-op.”

“While there were a number of factors that led to the rebate, the largest drivers were an increase in market share as well as the co-op’s leadership in incorporating efficiency changes while not compromising service,” co-op president John Preun said.

The co-op also announced Friday it will open its new hog-staging facility Sept. 3 at Winnipeg Livestock. The facility will initially be open every Thursday and Friday.