Through yesterday, cattle slaughter was down from the week before. The Choice cutout was up but Select dropped. Hog slaughter is up this week over last so far. The pork cutout did slide today, pulled down by bellies and loins. Other cuts were steady to higher. Bellies and loins represent the two largest year-over-year inventories in last month’s USDA Cold Storage report. Bellies were at 132 percent of a year ago and loins at 143 percent (179 percent for bone-in loins). The next report comes out on Monday. Red meat demand from retail remains strong. The key question is: how long until consumers’ freezers are full and the run on meat and poultry wanes?
The February slaughter report shows red meat prod...
What You Need to Know Today: Russia rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Black Sea, including a proposal to halt attacks on civilian shipping that could help restore grain flows from Ukrainian ports. Tyson Foods announced plans to permanently close its Joslin, Illinois, beef processing facili...
The big news in the cattle markets yesterday was Tyson Foods’ move to close two more beef plants. One of them, the Joslin, Illinois, plant was shuttered immediately after the announcement. The other, in Eagle Mountain, Utah, is a case-ready plant that does not slaughter cattle. Tyson also...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) on Wednesday. In July, the CPI rose 0.1 percent, seasonally adjusted, and rose 3.4 percent over the last 12 months, not seasonally adjusted. The index for all items less food and energy, or the “core” infla...
