Cattle Producers Congratulate Congressman Newhouse On Being Elected Western Caucus Chair

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association's (NCBA) Vice President of Government Affairs, Ethan Lane issued the following statement in response to U.S. Representative Dan Newhouse (WA-04) being unanimously elected as Chairman of the Congressional Western Caucus:

"Congressman Newhouse is a strong advocate for cattle producers and has been instrumental in getting critical legislation across the finish line – while at the same time educating others on...

Alternative Protein Market for Animal Feed Worth $4 Billion by 2026

The global alternative protein market for animal feed is projected to cross USD 4 Billion by 2026, according to a new research report by Global Market Insights, Inc. Growing animal feed business coupled with increasing livestock production across the globe are expected to have a positive impact on alternative protein industry for animal feed during the forecast period.

The alternative protein market for animal feed from the cattle livestock segment exceeded...

VIDEO: Morning Market Roundup Nov 24

Watch Urner Barry's reporters give insight into what is happening in the markets for beef, pork, poultry and eggs...

President Trump Welcomes NTF and National Thanksgiving Turkey to the White House

National Turkey Federation (NTF) Chairman Ron Kardel presented the National Thanksgiving Turkey named “Corn” to President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump during the annual National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation.

“Corn” and his alternate, “Cob,” received a formal pardon from the president and will now reside on the campus of Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. The National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation is a time-honored American tradition, dating back to...

The Consumer Confidence Index Decreased in November

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index declined in November, after remaining relatively flat in October. The Index now stands at 96.1 (1985=100), down from 101.4 (an upward revision) in October. The Present Situation Index – based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions – decreased slightly from 106.2 to 105.9. The Expectations Index – based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions – declined from 98.2 in October to 89.5 this month.

The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey, based on a probability-design random sample, is conducted for The Conference Board by Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and...

UK Restaurants Look Set to Recover as Consumers Still Prefer to Dine Out

The NPD Group says amid the severe and unprecedented COVID-19 business pressures affecting Britain’s out-of-home (OOH) foodservice industry, the delivery channel has been a welcome success story. Comparing the January-to-October period this year with the same period in 2019, delivery is up 14% in visit terms to 804 million and has seen a 40% increase in spend to £5.7 billion. However, although delivery has met a need during this unprecedented period of enforced home living, working and entertaining, NPD’s research shows... 

UK Consumer Spending to Fall by Nearly 14.9% in 2020

Total UK consumer spending is expected to fall by a staggering £183.6 billion (14.9%) this year due to the COVID-19-induced lockdowns, according to new research from Mintel’s flagship British Lifestyles report. This equates to a drop in spending of around £6,600 per household – with the biggest decreases occurring in the transport, foodservice, and holiday industries. Consumer spending in these three categories will fall by an astonishing £140.1 billion in total, or just over £5,000 per household – representing around 77% of the overall decline in consumer spending this year.

But it seems there is light at the end of the tunnel for these three categories as they are expected to bounce back the strongest in 2021: spending on transport will increase by...

NRF Expects Holiday Sales will Grow Between 3.6 and 5.2 Percent

With retail sales rebounding strongly due to continued consumer resilience, the National Retail Federation today forecast that holiday sales during November and December will increase between 3.6 percent and 5.2 percent over 2019 to a total between $755.3 billion and $766.7 billion.

“We know this holiday season will be unlike any other, and retailers have planned ahead by investing billions of dollars to ensure the health and safety of their employees and customers,” NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said. “Consumers have shown they are excited about the holidays and are willing to...

Top Meat, Poultry, Egg and Seafood Price Action Broken Down in the Latest Market Briefing 

Urner Barry is the leading provider of protein market news and information in the food industry. Through daily canvasses of the trade and an unrivaled historical database, our analysts are uniquely positioned to report on the underlying conditions and significant disruptors to the market. In this Market Briefing, Urner Barry reporters outline the latest action in the commodity protein markets, highlighting seasonal factors, disruptors, and current supply and demand fundamentals...

Current Restaurant Restrictions and Capacity By State

Coronavirus cases in the United States are growing. On Friday the U.S. recorded over 99,000 new cases – the highest single day total recorded by any country. With concerns rising over the upward trend in cases, restaurants across the country are beginning to see a new wave of restrictions. We're breaking down the latest restaurant news by state...

PODCAST: Investing In the Future: John Manzella on American Capitalism

This week on Market Digest Laura speaks with John Manzella, nationally syndicated columnist on global business, trade policy, labor, and the latest economic trends. In this episode we discuss expected affects of the U.S. election results, the trade war with China, investing in young farmers, and...

West Liberty Foods Announces Retirement of Gerald Lessard, President of Operations 

West Liberty, Iowa-based West Liberty Foods announced the retirement of longtime leader, Gerald Lessard, President of Operations. Gerald celebrated 16 years at West Liberty Foods this year.

Gerald will leave the company on November 30th, 2020, with over 40 years of food industry knowledge as well as expertise in livestock production and manufacturing. Throughout his career, he experienced progressive responsibilities starting with live turkey production through...

Kroger and Ocado Announce New Fulfillment Center and Expand to Include In-Store Capabilities

The Kroger Family of Companies, America's largest grocery retailer, and Ocado, a world leader in technology for grocery e-commerce, today announced the continued expansion of their partnership with plans to construct an additional Customer Fulfillment Center (CFC) in the South region, while also collaborating with Ocado on in-store fulfilment (ISF) capabilities with a planned rollout across Kroger stores, beginning in 2021.

"Kroger continues to accelerate the expansion of our national network to redefine the customer experience," said Gabriel Arreaga, Kroger's chief supply chain officer." Our partnership with Ocado is and will continue to...

Albertsons Implements Contactless Temperature and Health Screening Across All Facilities

Albertsons Companies announced that it has taken another step in enhancing its safe environment by implementing a contactless temperature check and health screening solution for associates and vendors. The new technology, now being deployed across all Albertsons Companies locations, enables a safer and more reliable health screening process for those who work in their stores and facilities.

After extensive testing and process refinements, the selected technology, provided by Turing Video Inc., leverages a built-in touchless body temperature scanner and...

Hormel Foods Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal 2020 Earnings

Hormel Foods Corporation reported results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020. All comparisons are to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019 unless otherwise noted.

The impact of the Sadler's Smokehouse acquisition (March 2020) is excluded in the presentation of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 non-GAAP measures of organic volume and organic net sales. The impact of the CytoSport divestiture last year is excluded from...

Nielsen Analyzes U.S. Store Locations Benefiting the Most During COVID-19 

In cities across America, the face of grocery and household shopping has changed dramatically this year. Months of working from home, reduced levels of commuting and high unemployment numbers are all adding up to a very different outlook for the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry.

Many of the top-performing stores across the nation have emerged in areas that haven’t historically shared the spotlight of strategic focus for companies. With signs of growing staying power, these changes are...

Billions in Consumer Spending Are Shifting as COVID-19 Forces Widespread Retail Disruption

Some of the highest revenue-generating grocery stores in the world are facing sweeping changes to their customer bases and their ability to deliver value to brands as people change where they shop—a change that, for some, may be permanent. The shifts come as COVID-19 forces millions of people to spend more time at home and less time commuting, a key driver of the shift.

The changes are effectively shifting the balance of power in the grocery segment. Some stores that were once the biggest sales contributors are now seeing sales declines while those that may have been...

HelloFresh Acquires Ready-to-Eat Meal Company Factor75

US subsidiaries of HelloFresh SE, have entered into an agreement to acquire all of the outstanding equity interests of Factor75, Inc. (including its subsidiaries “Factor”). HelloFresh is the leading provider of meal kits in the world and in the US. Factor is a leading provider of fully-prepared, fresh meals that combine health, convenience and restaurant-quality taste.

The acquisition marks the next step in HelloFresh’s growth plan in the US to strengthen its leading position and to expand its total addressable market. The total purchase price for the acquisition is up to...

The NPD Group Reveals Consumers' Top Plant-Based Product Choices 

When it comes to eating plant-based foods, consumers are definite in which types of these foods they want to eat at home and which they want to eat from a restaurant or foodservice outlet, finds The NPD Group. About 93% of meals or snacks that include milk alternatives are consumed at home and 7% are at/from a restaurant or foodservice outlet.

When it comes to meat analogues, restaurants and other foodservice outlets have the largest share of eating occasions at 78% while at home represents...

CHART: Industry Expectations for Weekly Cattle Slaughter

USDA: Amino Acid Helps Shore Up Defenses of Swine

A third round of feeding trials conducted by a team of USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and university scientists has again shown that a dietary supplement called L-glutamine can naturally promote growth and wellness in pigs.

Jay S. Johnson, an animal scientist with ARS's Livestock Behavior Research Unit in West Lafayette, Indiana, and his Purdue University collaborators are investigating L-glutamine as a natural alternative to using dietary antibiotics. Swine producers had used antibiotics to...

Nielsen: Thanksgiving Highlights COVID-19 Divide 

In a year unlike any other, even Thanksgiving is not immune to polarization in the U.S.

As we confront ever-rising COVID-19 cases and physical and financial restraints, this year’s Thanksgiving festivities will look and feel drastically different, depending on location, generation and the financial impact of the pandemic. Yet from online shopping to price hikes, consumers share commonalities in confronting a Thanksgiving unlike any other.

Americans are almost perfectly split on whether they’re planning to...

Denny's Brings Back Thanksgiving Dinner Pack 

Denny's is bringing back its family-style Turkey & Dressing Dinner Pack, offering guests a stress-free spread of traditional holiday favorites, perfect for celebrating at home. Turkey & Dressing Dinner Packs are available for pickup until Wednesday, November 25 at 6 p.m. EST by ordering on Dennys.com or the Denny's app.

Portioned for four people, the Turkey & Dressing Dinner Pack is prepared ready to heat and serve, and features...

Jack In the Box Reports Fourth Quarter FY 2020 Earnings

Jack in the Box Inc. reported financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended September 27, 2020.

Jack in the Box system same-store sales increased 12.2 percent for the quarter. Company same-store sales increased 9.6 percent in the fourth quarter driven by average check growth of 21.9 percent while transactions decreased 12.3 percent. Improvement in company same-store sales as compared with...

Tyson Foods Issues Statement on Waterloo Lawsuit Allegations

Tyson Foods, Inc. issued the following statement from Tyson Foods President & CEO Dean Banks in response to allegations made in an amended lawsuit involving the company’s pork plant in Waterloo, Iowa:

“We are extremely upset about the accusations involving some of the leadership at our Waterloo plant. Tyson Foods is a family company with 139,000 team members and these allegations do not represent who we are, or our Core Values and Team Behaviors. We expect every team member at Tyson Foods to operate with...

ANALYSIS: Power Move Setting Up In the Beef Cutout Behind Retail Strength

There has been a recent broad-based surge in the boxed beef market. Strength in ribeyes, tenderloins, chuck rolls, and...

ANALYSIS: Pork Market Weekly Trade Activity Levels

Daily trade volume in the pork market can be influenced by any number of factors. Observing which days certain items or groupings of items show...

ANALYSIS: An All-Encompassing View of Chicken Market Variables

In light of the unseasonal price momentum demonstrated by key items within the chicken complex, this week we thought it would be a great opportunity to...

Postmates Reveals Unprecedented Ordering Trends of 2020

Postmates revealed the unprecedented ordering trends of 2020 and it's clear 2020 was a year like no other.

The year started on a predictable note, with popular New Year's Eve hydration hangover remedies like Gatorade spiking 197% (WoW) on New Year's Day. Customers fell in love with heart-shaped pizzas this year (+1,800% YoY) on Valentine's Day where there was also a 4,462% (WoW) increase in orders for flowers - not too surprising. But in early March, as the global pandemic was declared and shelter-in-place orders began...

NCBA and PLC Secure NEPA Improvements for Livestock Producers

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Executive Director of Natural Resources and the Public Lands Council (PLC) Executive Director Kaitlynn Glover released the following statement on the U.S. Forest Service’s (USFS) final rule to update the agency’s National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations:

"This announcement represents decades of work by livestock producers who have told the Forest Service and other federal agencies for years that NEPA regulations need serious improvement. This rule formalizes changes that will allow

Americans Flock to Chicken, the Nation’s #1 Quarantine Protein

Throughout the last year, as home kitchens took center stage, Americans have been relying on chicken as a healthy and convenient protein that can be enjoyed by everyone. In fact, three-quarters (75%) of Americans who eat any chicken say they prepare chicken at home at least once a week. During the past 9 months of COVID-19, retail chicken sales have increased $1.3B, up 19.5% from the same period last year, according to IRI and 210 Analytics.

Today the National Chicken Council (NCC) unveiled the findings of a new survey fielded with the goal of better understanding chicken consumption trends and...