Uneven Recovery in U.S. Foodservice Sector Implies the Same for Animal Protein
Flexibility remains critical for animal protein industry, as foodservice sales not likely to reach prepandemic levels before mid-2022.
As COVID-19 spread across the country last year, it spurred the “great grocery grab of 2020” — a shift to at-home food consumption not seen since the early 1980s. The abrupt change also forced the most significant shift in meat supplies the industry has experienced, diverting massive volumes of meat and other food originally intended for restaurants into retail distribution channels and grocery stores.
Market Closeout
The coffee shop nod.
We all want confirmation that we are on the right track or that our strategies make sense. One of the best methods to get that is what I call the coffee shop nod of approval. We see it all the time: A group of cattlemen is sitting in a café, drinking coffee and one asks something like, “Where do you buy your bulls?” or “What mineral do you use?” When you offer the answer, and everyone just gives that subtle nod of approval, you know you are on the right track. If a seedstock producer wants to know if his marketing program is working, all he needs to do is see if the mention of their ranch name generates that nod of approval.
Policy Priorities to Serve State Departments of Agriculture
NASDA identifies food systems and food safety, infrastructure and capacity, climate resiliency, international trade and workforce development as policy priorities in 2021.
2020 brought unforeseen challenges to us all. Our health-care workers and first responders made incredible sacrifices to care for so many as we navigated COVID-19. As the pandemic arrived, a spotlight hovered over agriculture immediately, and the world watched as we fashioned our food supply system to meet the changing needs of Americans. The tireless commitment of foodservice workers, farmers, ranchers and all involved in producing our food cannot be commended enough. The food supply chain was and remains strong. 2020 pushed us to work together more than ever before, leading us to appreciate that 2021 requires the essential need for partnerships with others.
International Trade Regulations Affect Our Beef Industry
A behind-the-scenes look at exporting U.S. beef.
The United States imports and exports beef, and there are many regulations affecting these sales. Cheyenne McEndaffer, director of export services/access for the U.S. Meat Export Federation, says the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service Export Library is considered the bible of export requirements.
“It is a full compendium and publicly available,” she says. The Export Library lists the regulations for most countries to which the United States exports.
In The Cattle Markets
Will seasonality patterns for beef export sales and commitments hold in 2021?
Trade occurs when price differences between two locations are large enough after accounting for transportation cost, exchange rates, tariffs, etc., to economically justify the exchange. Exports vary throughout the year since prices reflect current and future supply-and-demand situations. Seasonality in cattle production, meat demand and market disruptions are some examples of why wholesale beef prices increase and decrease within a year.
The Link
The new Super Bowl for ag.
Who hasn’t been following the soybean market the last half of this year?
I’ve been glued to Beef Market Central more than a Kansas City Chiefs fan has been glued to football stats. It’s exhilarating and, frankly, just about to make me crazy. When do you pull the trigger? I said in early December, if beans hit $13.50 on the March board, I was getting out. However, it doesn’t look like it’s slowing down.
Supply factors took center stage for cattlemen in the past year as COVID-19 ravaged the marketplace. The backlog of finished cattle, carcass weights and price discovery have been such burning issues for months now, it’s been hard to free up mental space for anything else. Yet as we look back, there appears at least one boxed-beef trend left largely unnoticed by many.
