Beef prices impacted by BBQ craze?


 
Monty House

Monty House

TVWBB Pro
Saw that brisket flats are over $4.00/lb. at Costco. Made me wonder if the explosion of BBQ'ing across TVs and the backyards of America is appreciably contributing to higher beef prices.

My understanding is that last year's drought in the SW did help increase prices, but there's clearly more retail demand for certain cuts, like brisket.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Lew Newby:
I suspect that gas prices have a bigger impact than we do. Up 18 cents in the last week. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Oh yeah, definitely agree with Lew on this one. Gas has gone up 21 cents a gallon in the last week here. Gotta find me a horse..
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From what I've read, beef prices are up due to the smallest USA herd since the early 1950's, drought in TX and OK, and higher grain prices.
Add higher fuel costs, and more exported beef, and you have a recipe for higher prices.

I've also read that demand is starting to drop due to the higher prices.
 
Yea just wait till summer when the official grill season and vacation time comes
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X2 on the "Gotta find me a horse" and a few pigs and a cow!
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Tim
 
This mild winter and long term forecasts suggest we could be in for another drought in the deep South again this year. Hope we don't break last years records. I've never seen so many hay trucks going to Texas as this last year.

The good news is that the rain levels and ground water are just a few inches from normal now.
 
Record prices for US corn due to ethanol and China getting more wealth = more food consumption both in US corn and beef = more expensive for Americans.

Farm land is going for over $10,000 an acre in Iowa - unthinkable just a couple years ago.

Chad
 
Plus the meaty part of the bell curve of people eat mostly chicken breasts and beef. Hence, we still get pork and other chicken parts (relatively) cheaply. And the chicken breast thing also explains why a whole fryer is more expensive than leg quarters.

I'm hoping for a wave of vegetarianism to sweep the country.
 
we have a big problem here with hay prices and availability. lots of folks abandoning there horses etc. we don't eat much beef anymore as its just priced itself out of our budget. pork and chicken are ok.
 
It's supply and demand at every step of production, from feed (drought and ethanol cutting supply), fuel (we all know what happens there), to the final product (which growing economies like China, Brazil.... are demanding more).

I don't really know, but I suspect any increase in the popularity of barbecue is probably negligible compared to the other factors.
 
I seem to recall reading that ethanol being used for the E10 gas or whatever was coming from the same supply that goes to feed lots.
 
High feed prices AND high fuel prices and high demand for beef also low supply = perfect storm for sky high prices.
High petroleum costs effect most every thing. Fertilizer for crops and transporting by truck etc... 5 dollar a gallon gas coming they say...
 
Hey everybody, I've been lurking this board for the better part of 2 years since I bought my WSM. Figured this thread was a good reason to get a login and contribute. I farm for a living and we raise some cattle. BBQ has a certain impact on meat prices, but that tends to be more of a seasonal thing. The real issue with beef prices as was said, is the massive drought that led to many cow herds being liquidated. Ethanol has a limited impact, as a majority of the byproduct (called DDGs)ends up as cattle feed. There is not much net loss in that process. And the transportation cost to get that beef from the feedlot, to your freezer, is a very big deal. Yes, you see high farm prices in the news everyday. There is a tradeoff to that. My cost to grow an acre of corn has doubled in the last 5 or 6 years. I know it hurts some of you guys to buy 20 or 30 gallons of expensive fuel. It can also be painful when you use a thousand gallons of high priced fuel in a week.
 
Well said Clay! My family also farms but they have fruit orchards .. They have to buy fuel and fertilizer so I hear all of of it from my father in law!!
 
Thanks guys. I just wanted to give a little perspective outside of the kneejerk media. I did a little searching these forums and found virtually nothing, but do any of you with ample freezer space try to buy direct from a producer and take whole/half/quarter beefs? Having our own cattle gives a rare advantage, but there are many farmers who sell freezer beefs that way. It can be an avenue to help your costs. FWIW, we butchered one in January. Counting both the cost of the steer and what the locker charged me, the quarter in my freezer cost me under $450 for 156 pounds of meat. A few soup bones and about half hamburger, but also brisket, many roasts, ribs, T-bones, ribeyes, sirloins, minute steaks, etc. Basically, that gets you all the steaks for hamburger price, and better quality than much of what is at the supermarket.
 
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