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ANALYSIS: The Tug of War Between Chicken Wings and Boneless Breasts
During October of last year, we explored the growing price disparity between jumbo boneless breast quotations and jumbo-sized whole wings...
ANALYSIS: Whole Body Turkeys: Searching for a Seasonal Perch
With another year under the turkey industry’s belt, buyers and sellers of bagged birds are once again rolling up their sleeves as they...
CHART: Industry Expectations for Weekly Cattle Slaughter
ANALYSIS: Pork Bellies Kicking Off 2021 with Volatility
Last year, the conversation in January for light and medium bellies focused on how depressed prices were going into 2020, with values starting the year...
ANALYSIS: Boneless Chicken Breasts Blaze the Seasonal Trail
Since the year’s outset, several key lines within the chicken white meat complex have experienced a considerable uptick in...
ANALYSIS: November’s Turkey Export Figures Paint a Mixed Picture
Last month’s uptick in in total year-over-year turkey export tonnage was short-lived, as November’s figures fell back in line with...
ANALYSIS: Shell Egg Prices Rise Amid Strong Retail Demand, Seasonal Flock Rotations
After holding steady for more than two weeks, shell egg prices got a push to the upside today amid strong retail demand and...
ANALYSIS: Chicken Wings Start Year Undefeated
With NFL playoff season at our doorstep, wing marketers are ordinarily gearing up as they prepare for one of the busiest quarters of the year...
ANALYSIS: Pork Pizza Toppings Ahead of Super Bowl
With the Superbowl roughly a month away, a considerable amount of market interest has been focused on pizza toppings. As COVID-19 continues to hamper plans for large gatherings, and therefore...
ANALYSIS: Frozen Turkey Drums Continue to March Forward
Turkey marketers are welcoming 2021 with open arms thanks to the relatively admirable set of early-year trade conditions...
ANALYSIS: Turkey Cold Storage: A November to Remember
With November in the rear-view mirror, the time has finally come for turkey market participants to peer into the freezer and assess...
UB Consulting: Assessing the Protein Landscape as 2020 Comes to a Close
In an attempt to close out a despairing year for the foodservice industry, we once again take a look at the indicators we have analyzed in past reports. Back in March 2020, industry estimates...
ANALYSIS: WOGs - A Year in Review
With 2021 right around the corner, chicken market participants are taking a step away from the day-to-day to assess how the year has shaped up...
ANALYSIS: Update on German Pork Exports in Wake of ASF Outbreak
African Swine Fever case counts in Germany have exceeded 200, according to some sources. Since finding the first case of ASF on...
ANALYSIS: The Impact of External Variables on the Turkey Hatch
In retrospect, the turkey market landscape has shifted dramatically in only a couple short years...
ANALYSIS: A Closer Look at the Seasonality of the Round Primal
Currently, the round primal looks as if it is finding its seasonal demand which has moved prices higher into...
ANALYSIS: Chiming In on Chicken Leg Quarters
Those with exposure to chicken back half items are no stranger to this year’s uninspiring and highly volatile trade environment...
ANALYSIS: Turkey Exports Find Some Q4 Lift
After nine months of consecutive year-over-year reductions in total turkey export volume, October marks...
ANALYSIS: Pork Butts at Decade Lows for December
Bone-in pork butts have witnessed pressure in the market since the beginning of October, following almost...
ANALYSIS: UPDATE Lamb and Mutton Production Hit All-Time Lows
Yearly production remains a prominent factor for lamb and mutton on the domestic front as continued...
ANALYSIS: The Q4 Chill: Assessing Chicken Cold Storage Inventories
The most recent release of the Cold Storage Report generally coincides with the day-to-day happenings of the chicken market, while at the same time...
ANALYSIS: Australian Beef and Veal Exports to USA Hit Record Low in November
This week the Australian Department of Agriculture (DAFF) reported total beef and veal shipments to the United States at...
ANALYSIS: Cash Cattle Prices Could See Pressure in Q1
Boxed beef prices appear to be seasonally topping after staging an impressive rally throughout November. Although some primals continue to be...
ANALYSIS: What’s Next for Whole Body Turkeys?
After processors successfully marketed their whole body tom and hen production and the fruits of their labor are being enjoyed, they now shift their attention...
ANALYSIS: Turkey Cold Storage Traveling Down a Well Worn Path
Not only did Monday’s release of the Cold Storage Report closely coincide with the present state of the turkey market, but it also...
ANALYSIS: Shell Egg Prices Drop Amid Lackluster Thanksgiving Demand, Slowing Foodservice
After holding steady for nearly a month, shell egg prices have come under pressure this week amid lackluster Thanksgiving demand and...
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...
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...
ANALYSIS: Weighing in on Turkey Drums
With much of the turkey industry now focused on satiating whole-body bird demand, supply side tightness, particularly within...
ANALYSIS: How Bone-In Hams Perform Prior to Christmas
Hams, whether bone-in or boneless, take the limelight across domestic and export markets during the fourth quarter of the year as buyers...
ANALYSIS: Thanksgiving WOGs?
With much of the seasonal attention now focused on Thanksgiving-oriented turkey demand, it might come as a surprise that WOGs are also beginning to...
ANALYSIS: Shell Egg Values Hold, Even as Inventories Remain Perched at Near-Record Levels
While it’s quite common – if not expected – to see shell-egg supplies increase in early-November as producers gear up for...
ANALYSIS: Medium and Jumbo Boneless Breasts: Straying From the Traditional Price Spread
Historically speaking, medium-sized boneless breasts have enjoyed a clear-cut premium over their jumbo-sized counterparts...
ANALYSIS: Turkey Drums Find Their Rhythm
With November now upon us, whole body turkeys are commanding much of the seasonal spotlight, however...
ANALYSIS: Egg Product Market Comes to LifeThough retail demand for shell eggs has run significantly above norms since the peak pandemic period, foodservice demand has struggled to...
ANALYSIS: The Ups and Downs of This Year’s Chicken Hatch
It has been a topsy turvy year for the chicken industry to say the least. Between highly volatile retail and foodservice demand patterns, the enduring inconsistencies in...
ANALYSIS: Whole Body Hens: Looking Beyond the Holiday
With turkey processors aggressively attempting to fulfill existing orders and wondering how they might be able to satisfy anticipated fill-in demand...
ANALYSIS: U.S. Shell Egg Production Climbs as Suppliers Prepare for Seasonal Demand Increases
The USDA’s monthly Chicken and Eggs Report released this afternoon shows the number of hens laying table-type eggs in the U.S. rose...
Urner Barry's Market Briefing Brings You the Latest in Protein Pricing Insight
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....
ANALYSIS: A Challenging Year for Chicken Tenders
2020 has been anything but a traditional year for the chicken industry and line run tenders are no exception...
ANALYSIS: What’s Going On with Tom Breast Meat?
It’s safe to say that Thanksgiving and the whole bird centric activity which typically...
ANALYSIS: SpareRibs Lingering Around PEDv 2014 Levels
Like most items throughout the fresh pork complex, spareribs underwent a significant rally from...
ANALYSIS: August Chicken Exports - The Devil is In the Details
What a difference a year makes. About this time in 2019, chicken processors and allied components of the industry were licking their chops in anticipation of...
ANALYSIS: Pork Cutout Showing October Highs
With both heightened retail and export demand continuing into the Autumn months, along with labor constraints and limited cold storage stocks, the Urner Barry Pork Cutout has ascended to...
ANALYSIS: Nothing Average About Turkey Weights
This year being what it is, or has become as the case might be, there is not a protein offering on the street that has not had its traditional market world uprooted. Demand patterns have...
ANALYSIS: Ribeye to Strip Spread Continues to Widen Into Year-End
If we look at the chart for the spread (or price difference) between the ribeye and strip loin, it usually...
ANALYSIS: UB Beef Cutout CAB®/Choice Spread Remains Historically Wide
The chart shows the spread between the UB Certified Angus Beef® Cutout and the UB Choice Cutout. The positive number reflects the premium paid for...
ANALYSIS: Chicken Wings vs. “Boneless” Wings: An Opened Ended Debate
This year’s chicken market has been anything but predictable and despite their admirable performance, chicken wings are no exception...
ANALYSIS: Lamb and Mutton Production Hit All-Time Lows
Yearly production has continued to lessen for lamb and mutton on the domestic front due to diminished interest in...
ANALYSIS: Whole Body Turkeys: A Return to the Norm?
Turkey processors are once again shifting into high gear as they prepare for the anticipated return of fill-in demand leading up to the big holiday...
ANALYSIS: Pork 42 Trim vs. Beef 50 Trim
For some processed meat products, beef and pork trimmings can be used interchangeably on items such as...
ANALYSIS: Chicken Cold Storage: A Reflection of the Times
August’s cold storage coincide with the current market status of most major lines and serve to remind us of the supply-side challenges which marketers continue to wrestle with...
ANALYSIS: Turkey Holdings--In Tune With the Times
The most recent release of the USDA’s cold storage report helps to support the current standing of most major lines within the turkey complex while, at the same time, reflects...
ANALYSIS: Pork Cold Storage 2020 Update
Cold Storage is a key metric that allows us to see the impact the coronavirus pandemic has had, and continues to have, on the pork market overall. The diminished production in Q2, due to...
ANALYSIS: U.S. Breaking Stock Values Surge on Strong Exports, Government Buying
U.S. breaking stock values have surged 41% over the past two weeks, thanks to strong export demand and...
ANALYSIS: Record Chicken Weight a Product of the Times
Seasoned observers of the chicken industry understand that a number of factors contribute to feed conversion and weight gain among broilers...
ANALYSIS: Tidying Up Toms
It was only a few years back that the turkey industry was lamenting the state of the affairs in the whole bird market...
ANALYSIS: Chicken Slaughter--A Familiar Trend Emerges
With Q4 at our doorstep, this week we thought it would be a great opportunity to check in on the slaughter stats to investigate how the average weights of chickens and the distribution of them relative to headcount, is stacking up to the high bar set in 2019...
ANALYSIS: As Temperatures Rose, So Did Turkey Export Tonnage
Following three consecutive month-over-month reductions in total turkey export tonnage, July bucked the trend with outward volume increasing by 9.5 million pounds or 25.2% above...
ANALYSIS: Pork Trim Point Per Lean Comparison
Late seasonal domestic demand, export interest, lighter hog weights, and diminished availability of boning line workers have been noted as...
China and Japan Suspend Pork Imports from Germany Following African Swine Fever Case
According to the German Food and Agriculture Ministry, China and Japan have suspended imports of pork and live pigs from Germany after a case of African swine fever was confirmed in a wild boar near the Polish border in the eastern state of Brandenburg, Germany. This comes as South Korea banned imports of German pork last week.
Pork imports of 40,230 tons from Germany last year accounted for about 3.3% of Japan's total imports of pork, the ministry reported. Japan did not import any live pigs last year, down from six in 2018. China's ban on imports comes as the country deals with its own spread of the disease. German pork exports to China total about...
ANALYSIS: ASF Reported in Germany; A Look at German Pork Exports
An African Swine Fever case has been identified and confirmed in one wild boar in Schenkendöbern, Brandenburg, Germany on...
ANALYSIS: Q4 Wing and Tender Performance Dependent on Price and Seasonality
It is certainly a relief to have our daily lives slowly returning to something we might recognize as normal. There is no doubt that is the case for...
ANALYSIS: Pork Offals in Cold Storage Decline as Fresh Supplies Remain Thin
The labor force continues to be stretched thin at many production plants following the wave of closures that occurred earlier in the year due to...
ANALYSIS: Don’t Count Your Chickens Before They Hit The Scale
When it comes to boneless breast valuation, most players would agree that, other than finicky demand, the seasonal ebb and flow of bird weights is perhaps...
ANALYSIS: Tension In the Turkey White Meat Complex
In keeping with this year’s unusual and often precarious set of market conditions, a large differential has begun to...
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