Chicken prices at U.S. grocery stores have hit record highs and should stay elevated as Tyson Foods and other companies dial back poultry production to boost margins while inflation-weary shoppers buy chicken instead of beef and pork.
Higher chicken prices should improve earnings at top producers Tyson (TSN.N) and Pilgrim’s Pride (PPC.O), but will pinch consumers’ pockets as they try to save money by turning away from higher-end proteins. One index shows chicken producer profit margins at their highest in a year.
U.S. consumption of chicken is expected to exceed 100 pounds per person this year for the first time ever, data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows.
Beef consumption is forecast to drop to its lowest since 2018, as prices climb due to dwindling cattle supplies. Meanwhile, consumer spending cuts have knocked pork consumption to the lowest since 2015.
Arkansas-based Tyson, which sells all three types of meat, had to deal with a glut of chicken after earning massive profits when meat prices soared during the COVID-19 pandemic.
You’re gonna be paying ten dollars for a spaghetti squash and looking at four dollar avocados once the farmers catch on and the demand equalizers lol. People need to eat.
Produce is waaay less conglomerated into massive corporations. Its just too easy to grow produce for anyone to control the market. To a point where if produce gets too expensive, I can just grow it myself.
Who tf is upvoting this? It’s highly unlikely this person has the acreage, time, equipment, and knowledge to grow all their own food.
Even if they did, it’s not a real solution to the vast majority of people.
Thats not how supply and demand works, any supply and any demand affects prices, and me growing food affects both, even if i dont cover my entire demand. I can and do grow a surprising amount of food. I cant however raise cattle, or pigs, and could only reasonably raise chickens for eggs, not for meat. Because anyone, me, other folks, and small scale farmers all can produce more supply with produce instead of meat given the resources. Its not a cornerable market
Monsanto owns a lot of the farms now.
If the farmers can sell it for ten, I can sell them fresher for 9. “People need to eat” no, corporations are robbing you blind.
What are you talking about? And how do I stop corporations from robbing me blind then–by simply not eating chicken? You act like the solution is to simply “change behavior x” which I am doing constantly. I am continuously reevaluation my expenses and trying to find alternative solutions. The reason I’m eating chicken is because it was the cheapest option for the longest time. Are you suggesting I grow and butcher my own chickens? And why are you refuting the fact that people need to eat when it is an irrefutable truth? If people stop eating protein rich meat, the cost of protein rich veggies and other supplements will skyrocket, and here we are having this conversation again.
How long do I have, doc?
The body may continue to thrive for a very long time, but the brain does appear to be a total loss.