Hey Hog Smith, you might want to look into using whole shoulders or just butts instead of picnics. Butts will give you better yield and less labor time, so even at $1.20#, your cost might be better. If I'm cooking butts, I do a 3 butt/1 picnic ratio just to get the rich meat from the picnic.
I prefer whole shoulder because I think the picnic section adds tremendous flavor. You should be able to find shoulders by the case for under $1# Plus you can sell the shoulder whole if you like. A lot of people want them like that to slice.