Farm Credit Canada (FCC) is a federal crown corporation, with roots dating back over 45 years. Back then they were strictly a mortgage lender, offering one type of loan. Today, they offer 24 types of loans – 18 of them being customized products to meet the various needs of the agriculture industry and the sectors within it. In addition to financing, through their expanded mission, they provide a variety of other business solutions to farm families and ag-business. FCC operates out of 100 offices across the country – so they are represented in every hog-producing region in Canada and hold a fairly large loan portfolio in the sector. FCC’s Account Managers are fairly knowledgeable about the issues facing the hog industry and have found that although the reasons may be varied; expansion in the form of increasing the scale of operations is not in the forefront of producers’ minds. Rather, producers are placing more emphasis on how they can “hold their own” at least through 2006/07. The general consensus is that this core business goal will be achieved if they can: withstand tightening margins (in particular maintain their working capital position); re-tool or enhance existing operations in order to find finishing space –either under the umbrella of their own operation, or through contract barns; stabilize the herd from a health perspective; andor find and keep good employees. At Farm Credit Canada, “Agriculture is all we do.” So says their slogan. In French-speaking parts of the country, the literal translation is closer to “Agriculture…our reason for being”. Passion for the industry has made it easy for FCC to be there during the peaks and the troughs. Cycles in the industry result in continuous change in the needs of producers, and with that change, FCC continues to broaden its focus and to add value in a variety of ways.