A National Pork Board report expects pork to be even more price-competitive with beef and chicken during the fall. The pork supply continues to fall short of expectations. In the last month, slaughter is down 3.3 percent, and when combined with the decline in weights, production has been down four percent.
With Labor Day weekend, there will be some volatility in terms of pricing and supply. Hog slaughter is expected to quickly climb above 2.5 million head per week by mid-September. This will likely ease some of the tight supply. Labor-to-bone product has been a concern and could become more of an issue as slaughter moves higher in the fall. Ham prices are expected to trade firmly as export buyers are short-bought. Bellies should also ease lower in September and October. October is Pork Month, and rib prices are already above last year’s.
Read the full report here: https://porkcheckoff.org/news/fresh-pork-is-competitive-with-beef-and-chicken-and-expected-to-be-even-more-so-in-the-fall/