U.S. red meat and poultry in cold storage at the end of November were up significantly from the previous year.
Several turkey categories notched record lows because of depopulation due to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza and retailers preparing for Thanksgiving.
The USDA says red meat in cold storage was down 4 percent from the previous month, but up 10 percent on the year. Total pounds of beef in freezers were up 2 percent on the month and 6 percent on the year. Pork supplies were down 11 percent on the month, but up 13 percent year-over-year. Pork bellies were up 35 percent from last month and up 116 percent on the year.
Poultry supplies were down 11 percent on the month, but up 15 percent on the year. While chicken stocks were up 2 percent on the month and 22 percent on the year, turkey supplies were down 50 percent on the month and up 1 percent on the year.
Butter stocks were down 17 percent on the month and down 5 percent from 2021. Cheese stocks were down 1 percent on the month, but up 1 percent from November 2021.
The USDA’s next set of supply and demand estimates is out January 12th.
