Trade Wars Boost Pork, Beef Supplies

Nov. 19, 2018
U.S. consumption of pork and beef is expected to rise as prices fall due to trade wars.

U.S. consumption of pork and beef is expected to rise as prices fall due to trade wars that increase domestic supplies and induce consumers to trade up from chicken.

According to USDA estimates, pork consumption will rise 4.3% and beef 2.6% next year, compared with only 1.2% for chicken. Trade wars with Mexico, China and other nations started by the Trump administration have expanded the domestic supply of beef and pork, depressing prices: Lean hog futures are down 28% from this year’s peak.

Both retailers and restaurants are reacting by ramping up marketing of beef and pork, and deemphasizing chicken. Reuters reports that Kraft Heinz and Ahold Delhaize, owner of Food Lion and Stop & Shop grocery stores, have both cut prices on bacon. Meanwhile, quick-service restaurants released more than 50 new hamburger products in September, while cutting back on new chicken dishes.

Meantime, chicken processors are taking a hit. A spokesperson for the National Chicken Council told Reuters that he expects the industry to break even or lose money in the last quarter of this year.

Sponsored Recommendations

Revolutionizing Healthcare: The Impact of Digitalization in Biopharma Innovation

Biopharma enables an entirely new level of innovation that’s simply not possible in conventional drug development. It’s an approach that can fundamentally change the way healthcare...

Navigating the Automotive Industry's Electric Future

The automotive industry is at a turning point. Bloomberg estimates that by 2040, 54% of new vehicle sales will be electric. And by 2030, we’re looking at 100% of passenger vehicles...

Unified Process Control Brings Operational Clarity

Inland Empire Utilities Agency replaces its SCADA enterprise system with the PlantPAx Distributed Control System and reduces complexity for operators

PlantPAx DCS Improves Operational Reliability

KC Water calls on R.E. Pedrotti to replace obsolete wastewater SCADA solution with a unified Modern Distributed Control System (DCS).