Tyson Foods Categorically Rejects Conclusions Drawn by White House

Tyson Foods categorically rejects the conclusions drawn by the Secretary of Agriculture and the Director of the National Economic Council in a White House press briefing.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently published a report detailing the drivers of consumer inflation in the food sector, none of which are related to industry consolidation or scale. The report can be found here.

Increase in Beef Prices due to Unprecedented Market Conditions

As we have explained in great detail to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, in testimony provided in August 2021, which can...

ANALYSIS: Pondering the Potential of Chicken Wings and Boneless Breasts

Chicken market participants and football fans alike are on the edge of their seats as we inch closer towards the first kickoff of the year...

ANALYSIS: Depleted Inventories Contribute to Boneless Breast Rally

Although the chicken market environment has been anything but consistent lately, that’s not to say that there aren’t some familiar tenets still shining through...

ANALYSIS: Tallying up Turkey Production

In light of seasonally stout performance, this week we thought a dive into the production side of the equation to investigate how it is influencing the '21 market was in order...

ANALYSIS: Chicken Exports: It’s A Matter of Perspective

With June’s export figures hot off the press, players are turning to the charts as they reflect on the conclusion of Q2...

ANALYSIS: Turkey Raw Materials Continuing to Ride Updraft

Following last year’s lack of seasonal underpinnings, marketers on the raw material side of the business are breathing a collective sigh of relief thanks in large part to what has, so far, amounted to be stout performance for whole muscle white meats and the related trim lines...

ANALYSIS: Frozen Turkeys Steal The Seasonal Show

It’s no secret that the majority of turkey lines are continuing to enjoy a strong showing here in early Q3. While recent market dialogue and trade activity has unquestionably gravitated towards...

ANALYSIS: Turkey Thigh Meat and Pork Ham Quotations Reaching an Inflection Point?

With Q3 in full swing, further processors, especially those who reside south of the border, are paying particularly close attention to the price relationship between boneless pork hams and turkey thigh meat...

ANALYSIS: Jumbo and Select Breast Meat Values Shake Traditional Price Relationship

Over the years, close attention has been paid to the price differential between jumbo boneless breasts and select...

Poultry Quarterly Q3 2021: Improving Local Industry Performance, Shifting Trade Flows

The outlook for the global poultry industry continues to improve. This is mainly driven by the reopening of economies as vaccination levels accelerate in developed countries and increase in emerging markets. This will help the recovery of global, regional, and especially foodservice demand, which, on average, makes up one-third of global poultry demand. As supply usually responds slowly to such increases, significant price inflation in 2H 2021 is possible, especially as feed prices remain high and avian influenza has disrupted...

PLANT PROTEIN: Get to Know Players in the Plant Protein Market: Atlast Food

Stephen Lomnes, a very “fun-gi” and President of Atlast Food, said, “We are scaling up very fast to “meat” the tremendous demand we’re seeing from our products.” Atlast Food was founded in 2020 and is a spin-off of Ecovative, a leader in the mycelium-based biomaterials sector. After successfully procuring $40 million in their latest round of investment seeking, Atlast is certainly making the most out of mushrooms. That is where MyBacon comes in.

“We believe that nature has already created the best plant-based meats with gourmet, exotic mushrooms that have been growing in the wild for thousands of years. However, these particular exotic mushrooms that mimic the taste and texture of meat are often hard to find, only grow during...

Fourth of July Cookout Cost Stable Compared to Year Ago

U.S. consumers will pay just a few cents more for their favorite Independence Day cookout foods compared to last year, including cheeseburgers, pork chops, chicken breasts, homemade potato salad, pork & beans, strawberries, potato chips, fresh-squeezed lemonade and vanilla ice cream with chocolate chip cookies for dessert.

Farm Bureau analysis reveals the average cost of a summer cookout for 10 people remains affordable at $59.50, or less than $6 per person. The cost is up just 16 cents (less than 1%) from last year, but...

USAPEEC: Latest Update On the South Korea HPAI Egg Situation

Since the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) broke out, the consumer price of the egg has been soaring. However, at some point, the egg price is expected to fall from mid-year 2021. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), on June 11th, the domestic price of an egg tray, which is formed of 30 shell eggs, rose 46 percent to 7,557 KRW (6.69 USD), from 5,179 KRW (4.59 USD) the average year.

The HPAI has died down, but the price has not yet come down with it. With the prolongation of COVID-19, consumers tend to stay indoors and avoid eating out. The change in consumer behavior caused an increase in the demand for the egg. According to the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI), the average purchase of eggs per household in the first quarter of 2021 was...

NCBA-Won Funds Going Toward USDA Grants for Small, Independent Processors

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the creation of two new, competitive grant funding opportunities for small, regional, and independent meat processors using funds the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) worked to secure at the end of last year. After fighting hard for several key priorities for cattle producers in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, NCBA praised USDA for putting $55.2 million of those funds toward the critical need for greater beef processing capacity.

The competitive grant funding will be available through the new Meat and Poultry Inspection Readiness Grant (MPIRG) program. The funds will support small beef processing facilities making the improvements necessary to...

ANALYSIS: Price Inflation Across All Urner Barry Indices

Price inflation remains top of mind for many. Supply constraints across all proteins combined with robust demand has...

Beef Quarterly Q2 2021: Record Prices, but Will They Last?

Many key beef production and consumption areas across the world are currently experiencing high or record prices for beef or cattle. We explore what is driving this and whether it will last. There are also several other issues affecting global beef markets at present.

Covid-19

The rollout of vaccines, the transition to robust economic growth, and the advance of the northern hemisphere summer see many areas experiencing lower Covid case numbers and higher economic activity. With restrictions being eased, foodservice sales are also...

ANALYSIS: April Chicken Cold Storage Holdings: A Continuation of a Familiar Trend

Several months ago, we assessed the near universal downturn in cold storage holdings exhibited by key lines within the chicken complex, and by the looks of the USDA’s most recent report...

ANALYSIS: Strong Demand Keeps Frozen Pork and Beef Inventories Tight 

According to the latest USDA monthly cold storage report, released Monday afternoon, frozen beef and pork stocks at the end of April remain...

ANALYSIS: Chicken Boneless Breasts and the Jumbo/Medium Spread

Since their inception to the Urner Barry price sheet back in late 2009, medium-sized boneless breast quotations have...

PERSPECTIVES: Pork Demand's Wild Ride

The past year has brought volatility, uncertainty, and supply chain disruptions to nearly all industries, including the pork sector. The pork carcass cutout has been on a tear since the beginning of the year after setting 5-year highs and lows throughout 2020. The pork cutout is the approximate value of a hog computed using...

ANALYSIS: Turkey--Gauging Whole Bird Price Momentum

Although white meats and parts have received a great deal of attention in recent weeks as refreshed demand patterns and supply shortages carry spot prices higher, frozen whole birds have been...

ANALYSIS: A Critical Eye on Chicken Slaughter

Despite predictable seasonal advancements in demand from all traditional channels, the chicken trade environment remains anything but “normal” in the eyes of most players... 

ADM to Build New Soy Crushing Facility in North Dakota

ADM announced its plan to build North Dakota’s first-ever dedicated soybean crushing plant and refinery to meet fast-growing demand from food, feed, industrial and biofuel customers, including producers of renewable diesel.

Based in Spiritwood, ND, the approximately $350 million crush and refining complex will feature state-of-the-art automation technology and have the capacity to process 150,000 bushels of soybeans per day. Strategically located in a major soybean producing area, ADM’s global logistics network will enable the facility to access...

ANALYSIS: Q1 Chicken Exports End on a High Note

After a choppy start to Q1, the USDA’s most recent export figures lend credence to the increased confidence that buyers...

ANALYSIS: Turkey Buyers Climb the Rungs of the Seasonal White Meat Ladder

Despite the unique set of challenges that 2021 has presented to the turkey industry, market participants take solace in the fact that...

Pork Quarterly Q2 2021: Production Setbacks Slow Growth, Boosting Prices and Returns

Global hog prices are sharply higher in most markets, as processors scramble to find adequate supplies. Higher disease losses in key growing regions, along with the lagged impact of industry liquidation during the pandemic, have limited available hog supplies. Rabobank expects a gradual recovery in the herd, yet higher raising costs and demand uncertainty are expected to moderate the pace of growth. Lower production expectations have left the market short of pork, just as demand is beginning to strengthen. The imbalance is driving pork prices sharply higher in many markets, which is slowly being passed through to consumers, contributing to overall inflationary trends.

China: Herd losses due to new ASF outbreaks and health challenges are slowing the recovery. While below earlier expectations, the sow herd is flat vs. 2020 and will expand through year-end as...

ANALYSIS: Chicken Hatchery: Rising from the Ashes, But is it Enough?

About a year ago, we published a broiler hatchery analysis titled: “Coping with Production Excess”, where we posed a question to our readers...

ANALYSIS: Will Chicken Ever Come Up For Air?

Fate has an interesting way of affecting the commodity markets. Chicken is arguably a frequent end beneficiary of "fate," both good and bad, and receives it in more volatile doses than...

ANALYSIS: Turkey Production and Cold Storage-As Goes One

In recent months, the turkey complex has experienced a surprising level of price volatility, most of which has pointed towards the upside...

PODCAST: UK Beef Chats Episode 13

This week on UK beef chats, Mike Nesbitt and Gary Morrison explain how demand for beef imports are on the rise in the UK, how Chinese demand is causing prices to rise, and more!

ANALYSIS: Chicken Wings Head into Overtime

It isn’t often that chicken wings continue to command the limelight in Q2. But despite the conclusion of March Madness, and in the absence of any wing-centric holidays on the immediate horizon, the market...

ANALYSIS: Cash Cattle Slow to Rise Despite Soaring Beef Prices

Around this time last year, the pandemic drastically altered consumer buying behavior due to dining restrictions and...

Australian Beef Seasonal Outlook: Green Grass and Empty Pens

With breeding cattle inventory recovering from the lowest levels in over 30 years, there’s a unique opportunity to assess and then act on the future for the Australian beef industry. A number of challenges currently confront the Australian beef industry, including high cattle prices, low supplies, and China trade access. Australia’s position in the global protein world needs to be considered in rebuilding the herd.

Is Australia to be a supplier to high-quality niche markets, commodity supplier (of lean beef) to global trade, exporter of live cattle, or exporter of value-added beef to trade markets? “Any or all of these options may apply, but choosing one sets a path for the future. Decisions taken this year are not just about...

ANALYSIS: Turkey Thigh Meats Get a Leg Up

With springtime now in full swing, seasonal outreach is beginning to develop...

ANALYSIS: Pork Ribs Soar into April

Pork ribs traditionally witness a rally starting in April which extends into the summer months as increased demand for grilling reaches its peak. This year however...

PODCAST: UK Beef Chats Episode 11

This week on UK Beef Chats, Market Reporter Mike Nesbitt explains the uptick in seasonal demand for the summer months, touches on the reopening of dining across the UK, and more!

ANALYSIS: WOGS--How Quickly We Forget

It’s no secret that the vast majority of key lines within the chicken complex have performed quite admirably throughout Q1...

Poultry Quarterly Q2 2021: The Bumpy Road to Recovery

The outlook for the global poultry industry is gradually improving, but big differences remain between countries, and global poultry trade is still very competitive. The industry is facing major challenges due to Covid-19-related market disruption, very high and volatile feed prices, avian influenza (AI) in the northern hemisphere, and volatility coming from a bumpy recovery in countries affected by African swine fever (ASF). Key for producers will be to have a very disciplined supply growth, a focus on cost reduction via procurement, production efficiency, and feed formulation, as well as being prepared for big swings in demand driven by Covid-19-related government decisions.

As countries reopen foodservice, and while their control of Covid-19 improves, the poultry industry will start to recover. On average, 35% of global poultry consumption is via foodservice. “In countries where several of these disruptive factors come together, broiler prices have risen to high levels. Some governments have started to...

ANALYSIS: Turkey Cold Storage: Lending Credence to the Strong Market Climate

The latest release of February’s Cold Storage Report further validates the strong seasonal performance that most key lines within the turkey complex have exhibited...

Meat Purchases and Confidence at Record Highs

Americans are buying more beef, pork, poultry, and lamb than ever as increased time at home during the pandemic sent meat grocery sales soaring by 20% (IRI) from 2019 to 2020.

The national analysis released shows that three out of every four Americans agree meat belongs in healthy, balanced diets (up by nearly 20% since 2020), and 94% say they buy meat because it provides high-quality protein.

Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts commented...

REPORTER: Industry Veterans Come Together to Open Colorado Lamb Processors

This article was originally featured in the Spring 2021 Edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine.

As Easter and Passover approach, one cannot help but to think about lamb when planning a holiday meal. This year, there’s a good chance you could be eating lamb that has passed through the country’s newest lamb harvesting facility—Colorado Lamb Processors in Brush, Colorado.

Colorado Lamb Processors, which opened in September 2020, is the first new lamb processing facility to be built in the...

African Swine Fever: A Global Update – Ongoing Change in Global Pork Markets in 2021

African swine fever is actively influencing pork markets around the world, creating many areas of uncertainty – mainly in China, but also in Germany – which will not be resolved quickly. The implications of ASF for world pork trade are a major swing factor in global pork markets.

ASF influence on pork markets: China is the most obvious country where ASF continues to have a major influence. Its spread over winter highlights the challenges of managing this disease, and it has complicated the picture of China’s pork supply and demand. The ongoing pressure from ASF’s spread in Germany is also...

ANALYSIS: All-Fresh Beef Retail Averages Record High in 2020

All-fresh beef retail values, the measure of prices of all beef quality grades in grocery stores as reported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, averaged...

ANALYSIS: MSC Enjoys Unseasonal Updraft in Value

It isn’t often that MSC takes the spotlight, especially so early in the year before seasonal springtime demand has a chance to fully develop, but...

Food Price Surge is Unlikely to Revert

Agricultural commodity prices have surged almost 50% since mid-2020, causing concerns over food price inflation around the world and sometimes resulting in increased export taxes and quotas by producers at a time when importing countries want to import more.

Rabobank can identify four major factors driving the surge across agri commodities that will remain active in 2021: 1) US dollar weakness: Rabobank forecasts the US dollar to remain soft through 2021 (US dollar index -7% lower since mid-2020), but no further weakness is expected. 2) Weather: La Niña could extend into the US spring planting season. 3) Global demand: Good global demand (either for animal feed or storage) to continue through...

ANALYSIS: Egg Prices Surge to 11-Month High on Strong Retail, Foodservice, Export Demand

A combination of retail, foodservice and export demand sent shell-egg prices soaring to an 11-month high this week. After holding steady for more than...

ANALYSIS: Cash Cattle Prices Are Stuck in Limbo

The weekly USDA five-area direct average fed steer price last week was $114.07/cwt, steady with the previous week but $0.78/cwt less than...

Beef Quarterly Q1 2021: New Drivers in Cattle Innovation

Increasing awareness of the need to improve environmental and social outcomes, together with a growing appetite from investors in animal protein, are creating new opportunities and growth in cattle innovation.

“We believe that research and innovation in the beef industry will continue to evolve but we are currently enabled by two main catalysts that will stimulate this further. Firstly, new investors in the space and secondly, the sustainability drive that not only seeks production improvements but also creates...

ANALYSIS: Pork Cold Storage Lingers at Low Levels

Total pork cold storage continues to linger around decade lows, creating a tight supply condition and a base layer of price support for a number of...

ANALYSIS: January Chicken Cold Storage Holdings: Talk About a Clean Sweep

Several months ago, we spoke about the near universal downturn exhibited in chicken cold storage figures and by the looks of the USDA’s most recent report, that same undertone...

ANALYSIS: An Early-Year Check-up on Turkey Cold Storage Holdings

As we turn the corner into late Q1, turkey market participants are peering into the freezer to evaluate how the supply side of the equation is fending so far this year...

COVID-19 Disruptions Create New Areas of Opportunity and Risk for the Poultry Industry 

Covid-19 is disrupting the business in ways the global poultry market had never planned for, creating new areas of opportunity and risk. The impacts of Covid-19 are spread very unevenly between regions and between companies.

“Company leaders and investors need to constantly review market conditions and adjust company positioning to optimize growth and returns. There will be bigger differences between winners and losers, which will lead to a process of accelerated capital investments, consolidation, and internationalization in the coming years,” according to Nan-Dirk Mulder, Senior Analyst – Animal Protein.

Rabobank has identified three stages of Covid-19’s impact on the global poultry industry...

A Look at Protein Demand as the Six-Week Lenten Period Begins 

As the six-week Lenten period leadup to Easter begins, foodservice and retail are catering to those who cannot eat meat at least one day a week. As SeafoodNews reported, restaurants like Bojangles, White Castle, and Quizno’s are just a few offering seafood items for a limited time.

Last year, Popeyes brought in a limited time Buttermilk Biscuit Shrimp offering for Lent. To switch things up this year, Popeyes introduced a new contender in the "Chicken Sandwich Wars," a Cajun Flounder Sandwich. But how could a new fish sandwich offering during Lent impact the chicken sandwich battle, which has become...

US Beef Demand: The Risk of Recovery

The optimistic anticipation of a post-pandemic world continues to intensify with the ongoing distribution of Covid-19 vaccines. From a beef industry perspective, virus control will relieve much of the current strain on the processing and distribution sectors.

Throughout the next several years, innovations accelerated by Covid-19 will go live, as well as technological advancements across the supply chain. Simultaneously, tighter cattle supplies from a declining beef cow herd will...

ANALYSIS: Do Large Forward Sales Help Future Spot Prices -- Strip Loin Rally in 2021

The January rally in strip loins has been fierce, with gains of 27 percent so far since the start of the year, compared to...

ANALYSIS: Don’t Sleep on Chicken Leg Quarters

With chicken front half items continuing to be the talk of the town, it’s easy to overlook the slightly less exhilarating, albeit seasonally admirable, status of frozen leg quarters...

ANALYSIS: Boneless Chicken Breasts in the Crosshairs

One of the first things that any Econ student quickly gets acclimated with is how the quantity of a given commodity that manufacturers want to sell and the quantity of consumers who wish to buy, interact with one another...

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...

Urner Barry Releases January Emerging Plant Protein Report

Plant based startups are increasing their use of both sunflower seed proteins and oils in formulation of their meat analogue and plant-based snack creations. The protein content of a sunflower kernel ranges between 20% and 40%, complemented by an array of high-quality nutrients which...

Urner Barry Presents Plant Protein Insights Webinar 

The plant protein sector is developing rapidly around the globe. Innovative and unique offerings enter the market daily under increased pressure for sustainable and nutritious alternative food options. Demand for plant protein ingredients has become an important benchmark for manufacturers, ingredient providers, startups, traditional protein suppliers, and investors interested in this space.

Join Urner Barry on Thursday, January 21, as host Laura Zinger interviews...

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: 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...

Urner Barry Releases January Pulse Protein Report

Demand for further processed pulse ingredients continues to steadily increase in parallel to improved protein innovation technologies with meat and dairy analogue products. Fava beans, a type of broad bean pulse crop, have garnered recent increased interest as the versatility and functionality of the protein as well as...

REPORTER: Egg Product Markets Rally to Second Half Highs

Though retail demand for shell eggs has run significantly above average since the peak pandemic period, foodservice demand has struggled to return to normal volumes. As much as 22% of all U.S. production is destined for this channel, around 7% being shell eggs and the rest going into the sector in the form of egg products.

Processors have been forced to reduce outputs over the last eight months, evident in the USDA’s Eggs Processed Under Federal Inspection report, which showed total cases broken running at about 1.1 million a week from...

PODCAST: An Economic Point of View - Will Sawyer of CoBank

This week on Market Digest Laura speaks with CoBank Lead Protein Industry Analyst, Will Sawyer. Will brings his expertise to the plate as they discuss holiday demand for protein items, protein supply, the beef complex, corn and soy inflation, and...