Chicken prices at U.S. grocery stores have hit record highs and should stay elevated as Tyson Foods and other companies dial back poultry production to boost margins while inflation-weary shoppers buy chicken instead of beef and pork.
Higher chicken prices should improve earnings at top producers Tyson (TSN.N) and Pilgrim’s Pride (PPC.O), but will pinch consumers’ pockets as they try to save money by turning away from higher-end proteins. One index shows chicken producer profit margins at their highest in a year.
U.S. consumption of chicken is expected to exceed 100 pounds per person this year for the first time ever, data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows.
Beef consumption is forecast to drop to its lowest since 2018, as prices climb due to dwindling cattle supplies. Meanwhile, consumer spending cuts have knocked pork consumption to the lowest since 2015.
Arkansas-based Tyson, which sells all three types of meat, had to deal with a glut of chicken after earning massive profits when meat prices soared during the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are actually a lot of canned and frozen plants other than beans and rice. Tofu is really good (also rising in price, but still not as bad as meat), and keeps an extremely long time in the fridge. I get a bunch of no salt added canned vegetables for super cheap because I have disabilities and I cannot prepare everything from scratch, and make a really good vegetable soup full of protein from peas and beans, for really cheap. The reason I get no salt added is because then I can add bouillon and spices to make my own broth, which would be grossly salty if I also used salted canned food. Although the number of cans vary, we call it 9 Can Soup. Because that’s what it had the first time. I also use fresh potatoes if I have any on hand. One of the cans are usually tomato sauce. Sometimes I’ll add a few cans of salted veggies if I got them from a food bank, I just rinse them.