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.
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.