Each time Nathan Hedden hears the term swine flu he experiences a tinge of pain.

“That just makes me cringe knowing how devastating it is to our industry,” he said about misconceptions surrounding the H1N1 influenza A virus.

National media such as CNN, The Associated Press and Fox News often refer to the virus that is causing worldwide concern as the swine flu, which Hedden calls mislabeling.

A Cass County resident and member of both the Indiana and National Pork boards, Hedden said the incorrect references hurt an already struggling industry.

Prior to April 24, the day claims surfaced about a connection between the new strain of flu virus and antibiotic use on pigs housed in concentrated animal feeding operations, pork producers were dealing with the effects of the recession, an increase in energy prices and the rising cost of grain after the push for widespread use of bio-fuels.

Over the past two years, pork producers have averaged a $20 loss per head. Hedden expects $40 to $50 losses this fall.

Since April 24, the industry has suffered greatly, said Hedden, who is also the Indiana finishing manager with Dykhuis Farms Inc. out of Michigan.

“From that time until today our industry has lost over $600 million because of the mislabeling,” he said.

By the end of the year, industry analysts predict that number to be nearly $3 billion in lost revenue when comparing the futures markets to what is being realized.

The problem is not from pork sales within the U.S. Domestically, consumers have continued buying pork products and sales have actually increased by 4 percent, Hedden said.

Where the mislabeling really hurt producers is the export market, which is down 20 percent from where it was last year before the virus scare.

“We rely so much on the export market,” Hedden said.

Countries such as Russia and South Korea have banned imports of pork despite the fact that no one has contracted the flu by eating the meat of an infected animal, nor has a pig in the U.S. been diagnosed with having the H1N1 virus.

“So, a lot of misrepresentation is just crushing us right now,” Hedden said.

Mexico, the largest importer of U.S. pork, has resumed buying products at normal levels but the damage to sales is already done.

The “swine flu” scare hit at the worst possible time, Hedden said. Typically, the end of April is when producers see a summer rally in the hog market as people begin barbecuing.

“That’s when we see products take off from a demand standpoint,” said Hedden. “The timing on the H1N1 could not have been any worse for our markets.”

Producers are getting backed up with frozen pork supplies, which is outstripping demand, Hedden said.

According to a recent article published on Forbes.com, supplies in cold storage warehouses surged to record levels in July. The USDA’s Cold Storage report stated that frozen pork stocks were at 547.3 million pounds, up from 505.3 million last year.

Hedden foresees liquidation in the pork industry, meaning some producers will have to cease operation.

“That will have to happen as the industry continues along,” he says, even with the federal government announcing it would purchase $30 million in pork products for food programs.

Hedden does not think any local operations will go under, but blows to the industry impact area families, businesses and government, he said. Dykhuis Farms alone has more than 20 operations and 120,000 pigs in north central Indiana from Reynolds to the east side of Marion.

To correct any misconceptions, organizations like the Indiana Pork Producers Association sent memos to media outlets asking them not to partake in distribution of false information. They also convinced politicians to cease calling H1N1 the swine flu.

With the flu season quickly approaching, Hedden and others in the pork industry have renewed their effort to notify the public that pork products are safe to eat.

Hedden says there could be a silver lining to the problems plaguing the industry.

“Going through difficult times like this forces us to be more efficient,” he said. “Coming out of this, those efficiencies that we normally wouldn’t be looking for should make us stronger on the other side of this.”

The “other side” could still be a year or more away. The futures markets show no profit for pork producers in 2010.

• Kevin Lilly is news editor of the Pharos-Tribune. He can be reached at (574) 732-5117 or kevin.lilly@pharostribune.com