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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsCheap Beef Is Here for Summer Burgers and $1 Taco Bell Burritos
Vegetarians aside, who doesnt like cheap burgers?
Americans celebrating Memorial Day this weekend -- the unofficial kick-off to summer and the grilling season -- have one more windfall coming their way: the cheapest retail prices for ground beef in two years.
Bumper grains crops have reduced costs to feed animals, and cattle ranchers have been expanding their herds. Thats good news for consumers who will see beef prices drop as much as 2 percent this year as annual production increases for the first time since 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts. Hedge funds are betting that the lure of low-cost meat will help stimulate demand and help cattle futures to rebound.
Were absolutely at what could be the peak usage season of the year, said Don Close, Rabobank Internationals St. Louis-based vice president of food and agribusiness research for animal protein. This year has been somewhat frustrating just with so much rainy, cold weather, particularly through that East Coast corridor. Expectations are theres a lot of pent-up demand there, once that summer weather actually comes to bear.
Grilling Staples
After the Fourth of July, Memorial Day is tied with Labor Day for the most popular occasion for barbecuing, according to the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association. More than 60 percent of grill owners will fire it up this weekend, the group estimates. Adding to the excuses to celebrate, its more than burgers that have gotten cheaper. An index of seven party staples that includes ice cream and potato chips is at the lowest level since August, according to retail prices compiled by Bloomberg. The measure is down 1.4 percent from this time last year.
more...
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-22/cheap-beef-is-here-for-summer-burgers-and-1-taco-bell-burritos
Our local Meijers is selling choice ground chuck for $1.99 this week. Lowest I've seen in years...
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)But worth every penny!
Demonaut
(8,937 posts)Throd
(7,208 posts)Beef seems more expensive than ever right now.
grasswire
(50,130 posts)Good thing I rarely eat red meat. I would be suspicious.
villager
(26,001 posts)Given how the real costs are, of course, externalized.
Amishman
(5,559 posts)I know beef is not the most environmentally friendly diet staple, but I'd rather focus on improving other areas of environmental impact first (reducing fossil fuels, enhanced recycling, etc).
Cows are just too tasty for me to complain
villager
(26,001 posts)Why should you be any less solipsistic than any other human being?
Major Nikon
(36,827 posts)Viva_La_Revolution
(28,791 posts)Perfect time to try it out!
Purveyor
(29,876 posts)Dem2
(8,168 posts)Gout blows.
liberaltrucker
(9,130 posts)True, it was on sale, but still....
MrScorpio
(73,631 posts)I guess that's more left over for the beef eaters.
GreatGazoo
(3,937 posts)The taxpayer subsidizes the entire beef industry starting with corn production. Over $8 billion in corn subsidies for 2015.
Bumper crop means the price of the corn falls below the cost of producing it (with Monsanto seed and chems) and the taxpayer kicks in the difference.
Demonaut
(8,937 posts)silvershadow
(10,336 posts)NickB79
(19,297 posts)It destroys the planet, tortures cows in factory farms, makes us obese and eventually kills us, but who cares?
Realistically, beef would be $10/lb if all the true costs of producing it were taken into consideration. Meat shouldn't be a main dish; it should be a side dish. Anyone remember how the recommended serving of meat is supposed to be the size of a deck of playing cards? The only thing that makes it as cheap as it is in the US is the massive amount of subsidies we chuck at Big Ag to produce all the cheap corn and soy for those factory farms.
It's funny how so many people claim they want us to end corporate welfare, then turn a blind eye towards things like this.