The meat shortage is here

in basic terminology, yes, the same...it's like in some parts of the country, we drink soda......in other parts, it's pop....

deep freezer (chest type)
https://www.lowes.com/pd/GE-Garage-...uO4pa1JE-36VxZSiZBRoCQw4QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

stand up with refrigerator type of freezer.

Frigidaire FFHT1514TW White 28 Inch Wide 14.5 Cu. Ft. Energy Star Rated Top Mount Refrigerator

i told the wife, many, many years ago, that if she wanted a "freezer", i'd get her any sized one she wanted. she declined. but it would have been the "chest type"......or...just a freezer.

 

This is a harbinger of things to come.
Altercation at a Family Dollar Store in Flint MI. Security guard shot to death over not admitting a customer because of not wearing a face mask. A Face mask.
3 charged with murder of Family Dollar security guard over face mask dispute

Wait until the last package of food is gone from the shelf. You have seen what happens with shoppers on Black Friday over a silly TV set on sale. Wait until people think there isn't going to be any food in the store.

 

That is why I called it bread and circuses.

Uncle Sam inflated invidual Snap balances to about 38 million or so people from 16.00 a month to twice monthly 179.00 deposits plus 16. The snap card got it twice last month for just about under 400 dollars all done. Which for me represents about 5 months or a year if on short rations.

I have enough on hand to feed people when the time comes. I don't know how many but if things get really bad, there will be a few plates here and there. It wont be much but its better than being hungry at night when it's really tough.

And its gone. There will be another near 200 deposit indexed to my last name this month later on.

The people would have rioted long ago.

I learned in the Farm Report that last years Corn was no good. Not even fit for Silage. So the cattle problems among other livestock needing to be slaughtered was already pending months ago on what is essentially a failed harvest in the USA.

Once you slaughter cattle, its about 6 years to get them back to good feed weight for sale to market give or take.

On our farm back east we stored rolls of hay for our cattle several times a year. Its good work most years. Chop, mow, roll and store in the polebarn. Winter comes around, throw three rolls out for the cattle. They will dispose of it quick enough.

I am not a cattle man. There are those who can do it and people like me who are taught just enough not to get stomped, squished or killed. Particularly if it's feeding time and oh... 100 tons of hangry comes through the gate after mooing for hours. If you ever see a 2x2 concrete barn post groan (Sunk 20 feet down) under the pressure...

 

i have been "fore-seeing" civil unrest and violence and rioting soon to come, and come in droves.

some states are going to re-open, however, the mayors of cities and towns, still can keep things shut.

to me, this is against my civil rights to have us on lock-down. we are NOT criminals, we DO NOT deserve to be treated as such. just recommend that we distance ourselves and wear a mask, BUT DO NOT ORDER US to do so, this is NOT a communist country.

i have my handguns, i have ammo, and MORE is coming this week.

"i am loaded for bear", or "i am loaded to the teeth", as some use euphemisms.

and to me, at my ripe old age, i have seen a lot, NOT as much as guys in Nam, or anyplace else have seen, but darn-it more than enough to recognize when my civil rights and liberties are being violated.

 

Hmmm....

 

Run on meat you say? Ive been stacking meat for 4 weeks now. I was thinking about Fort Collins 5 weeks ago and recalled they were elbow to elbow processing beef.

That did it. Start buying meat. Before any of this rationing or worse the county at large gets the same idea.

I just bought the very last box of 10 trashbags lost behind some cleaning buckets from a EMPTY WALL of shelving. Apparently the little cheap container fell behind the bucket as people shuffed in their rush to get at them.

Out of trashbags? Come on now. For what? Bodies?

One of my cashiers processed 12 of the beef sausages the other day no problem but she thought I was a nutter. I told her we're german see that saurkraut? and broke a word or two of that language.

OH... ok...

Excuses.. ha...

 

The Tyson plant in Waterloo IA can process 19,500 hogs per day, was shut down. It is now to reopen Thurs with full support of local officials, public safety, and union support. They will operate at one third capacity. They have done it right.

 

I am happy to have something from the plants. They are horribly important to the Nation.

 

As the meat-supply crunch hits grocery stores, expect higher prices for burgers and steaks, purchase limits and smaller selection

With meat shortages hitting burger chains like Wendy’s Co., what can shoppers expect at their grocery store’s meat counter?

The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted production at U.S. meatpacking plants, leading to higher prices and scarcity for popular items like ground beef and chicken breasts in supermarket meat cases. Grocers, seeking to head off panic buying, have begun limiting purchases and say they are preparing for intermittent shortages through May if not longer.

These shortages may intensify in the coming weeks given the lag between production at the slaughterhouses and distribution to stores. That means shoppers can expect higher prices, slimmed-down selections and nudges to choose plant-based meat alternatives or less popular cuts like sirloin steak.

Buying Limits
As consumers cook more at home, they are buying more protein. Supermarket meat sales are up about 41% year-over-year for the week ended April 25, according to research firm Nielsen.

Alicia Bedard, a 35-year-old mother of four boys, said her local Market Basket store in Royalston, Mass., had placed purchase limits for meat and was out of chicken when she went over the weekend.


“I felt like I was being punished because I have six people in the family,” said Ms. Bedard, who bought beef patties and pork chops. Unable to buy steak for her husband’s birthday, Ms. Bedard tried to buy meat from a local farm, but was told she would have to wait until the end of May.

Customers at ShopRite and Price Rite chains, owned by Wakefern Food Corp., are allotted two items each of beef, ground beef, pork and chicken. In-store butchers are cutting larger-size meat meant for restaurant sales, weighing and repackaging for shoppers.

“We’ve been adapting and adjusting on a week-to-week basis,” said Karen Meleta, vice president of consumer and corporate communications for the supermarket chain.

Kroger Co., Costco Wholesale Corp. and Albertsons Cos. have also limited fresh meat purchases in some stores. New York-based Gristedes Supermarkets urged consumers to stock up on meat in a promotion sent to customers Tuesday, with photos touting fully stocked cases of beef and pork.

Around 20 major meatpacking plants have temporarily closed during the past several weeks due to Covid-19 outbreaks among employees, cutting U.S. beef and pork production last week by about 35% from the same period last year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Agricultural lender CoBank estimated chicken production fell 7%.

Last week, President Trumpissued an executive order that gave the U.S. Department of Agriculture greater discretion over meatpacking plants, allowing them to continue operating and shielding them from state and local pressure to shut down due to Covid-19 outbreaks among workers. Some plants remain closed and others only partially staffed, industry officials said, reducing overall meat production.

Higher Prices, Less Selection
Grocers expect to have fewer offerings of beef in the weeks ahead, a challenge given the approach of grilling season when consumers typically spend more on meat. Processed cuts, such as prime beef and boneless pork loin, will be less available because they require more manual labor at a time meat suppliers are looking to speed the packing process. Whole chickens, for example, might be easier to find, they say.

The supply chain disruptions are driving meat prices higher, costs that many grocers are passing on to consumers. Discounts will be scarce.

Forecasting levels of meat supply beyond the next month or so will be tough, said Roger White, senior vice president of sales and merchandising at Associated Food Stores, an association of more than 400 independent retailers.

Consumers are “going to find meat on the shelves,” he added. “They might not find every single item they’re used to seeing.”

Midwest chain B&R Stores Inc. is selling more round and T-bone steaks, cuts that are less popular but more easily stocked, said President Mark Griffin. He said the chain isn’t highlighting any cuts after a promotion for rib-eye last week resulted in a rapid sellout.

The value of choice-graded beef carcasses, a source of burgers and steaks, hit a record $422.57 on May 5, surging 63% over the past two weeks. Wholesale ground beef prices have climbed about 40% over the past two weeks, and researchers at CoBank project retail beef prices by July to be 20% higher than last year’s level.

Hugo Morales, who runs a printing business and lives in Ontario, Calif., said he has noticed higher beef and pork prices at his local supermarkets. He estimates he is spending about 25% more on grocery trips to feed his family of five.

“We’re pretty dependent upon meat. We have it with almost every meal,” said Mr. Morales. The 39-year-old said he bought strip steak instead of rib-eye to save money.

Overall retail prices of fresh meat, including beef, pork and poultry, have increased about 8.1% year-over-year for the week ended April 25, according to Nielsen. For the week ended Jan. 4, meat prices had been up 2.2% year-over-year.

Mark Skogen, chief executive of Skogen’s Foodliner Inc., which operates as Festival Foods, said he is working with any suppliers it can find to load up on meat.

“As long as you can limit hoarding, there’s going to be protein to be eaten,” he said, adding that seafood sales are rising, too. Festival Foods is expecting to have fewer promotions and sales on meat.

Going Beyond Burgers
This week, Kroger will start selling plant-based meat products from Impossible Foods Inc. at 1,700 of its stores. A company spokeswoman said the partnership was arranged before the pandemic and that plant-based food is among Kroger’s fastest-growing categories.

Rival Beyond Meat Inc. is beginning to sell packs of its pea protein-based burger patties to more grocery chains, including warehouse stores like Walmart Inc.’s Sam’s Club and BJ’s Wholesale Club.

Beyond Meat Chief Executive Ethan Brown said the company over the next few months plans to discount its products and sell bulk packages to be more cost-competitive with pricier ground beef, and capture new customers.

Write to Jaewon Kang at jaewon.kang@wsj.com and Jacob Bunge at jacob.bunge@wsj.com

 

Plant based burgers are not meat to me. Its not fitting. However the FDA apparently allows them to be consumed by humans so... if thats your flavor go for it.

Last week in Walmart there was 48 tubs of plant country crock large unsold in a bare butter shelving at the wall.

This week there was another 50 plant country crock unsold in a bare butter line.

Olive oil butter is not bad but does not cook well vs rice and stuffing in boiling water.