Beef, Pork And Shrimp Prices Soar To Record Highs

[Donger]

We previously noted that both beef and pork (courtesy of the affectionately named Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus) prices have been reaching new all time highs on an almost daily basis. It is time to update the chart.



... pork



... and shrimp.



Prices for shrimp have jumped to a 14-year high in recent months, spurred by a disease that’s ravaging the crustacean’s population. At Noodles & Co., a chain with locations across the country, it costs 29 percent more to add the shellfish to pastas this year, and shrimp-heavy dishes at places like the Cheesecake Factory Inc. are going up as well.

Restaurant chains, already struggling with shaky U.S. consumer confidence, are taking a profit hit as prices climb. Even worse, the surge is happening during the season of Lent, when eateries rely on seafood to lure Christian diners who abstain from chicken, beef and pork on certain days.

“It’s coming at a tough time for the industry,” said Andrew Barish, a San Francisco-based analyst at Jefferies LLC. “With the Lenten season, what you’ll see out there is a lot of promotions with seafood, and usually shrimp is a big part of that.”

[ghak99]

Originally Posted by Donger

Is this supposed to be on the rail pricing?

[petegz28]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

I actually went to a meeting where a member of the KC FED was the speaker. He said no inflation, someone called BS on food, fuel, etc.

His response? Excluded. Too volatile. Screws up the numbers.

To further elaborate, somehow in Wall St. logic, paying more for food and gas is okay and won't hurt the economy as long as you can get a loan for a cheap interest rate.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

Again, I don't know WTF data he's using. Live Cattle are 145.75 per 100 weight.

That may be carcass weight? Retail info? I don't know. Either way, the LC chart is dramatically more volatile. Still new all time highs, that's not wrong, but the prices sure as **** aren't what's being traded at CME.

Beats me.

[oldandslow]

HFC --

Sold 10 700 lb holstein steers last week for 2.08 per hundred.

For those of you out of the know, that's 1,400 dollars for a steer that's a little over half way ready for the butcher...

The market is crazy right now. It's the reason I went ahead and sold them.

Pigs are going to get that way, but I think that is due to the virus that is killing 35% of the newborns.

I am not big farm. But now is the time to be a farm producer, imo. I am looking forward to the farmer's market season.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by Donger

Beats me.

Good thread, then.

[saphojunkie]

Maybe because human beings shouldn't really be eating pork, beef, and shrimp in every region of the country every ****ing day.

Somewhere along the lines in human evolution the "fatted calf" became a daily habit.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

Good thread, then.

Well, like I wrote, I went looking after seeing the price of shrimp had gone up dramatically and wanted to see why.

Sorry if you are offended.

[KC native]

Originally Posted by petegz28

It's a good thing we have Wall St. telling us that there isn't any inflation. I mean as long as you exclude food and gas.

....

Pete, you know damn good and well that the CPI number includes food and fuel. Core CPI is the calculation that leaves those off.

What goods and services does the CPI cover?
The CPI represents all goods and services purchased for consumption by the reference population (U or W) BLS has classified all expenditure items into more than 200 categories, arranged into eight major groups. Major groups and examples of categories in each are as follows:

FOOD AND BEVERAGES (breakfast cereal, milk, coffee, chicken, wine, full service meals, snacks)
HOUSING (rent of primary residence, owners' equivalent rent, fuel oil, bedroom furniture)
APPAREL (men's shirts and sweaters, women's dresses, jewelry)
TRANSPORTATION (new vehicles, airline fares, gasoline, motor vehicle insurance)
MEDICAL CARE (prescription drugs and medical supplies, physicians' services, eyeglasses and eye care, hospital services)
RECREATION (televisions, toys, pets and pet products, sports equipment, admissions);
EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATION (college tuition, postage, telephone services, computer software and accessories);
OTHER GOODS AND SERVICES (tobacco and smoking products, haircuts and other personal services, funeral expenses).

Also included within these major groups are various government-charged user fees, such as water and sewerage charges, auto registration fees, and vehicle tolls. In addition, the CPI includes taxes (such as sales and excise taxes) that are directly associated with the prices of specific goods and services. However, the CPI excludes taxes (such as income and Social Security taxes) not directly associated with the purchase of consumer goods and services.

The CPI does not include investment items, such as stocks, bonds, real estate, and life insurance. (These items relate to savings and not to day-to-day consumption expenses.)

For each of the more than 200 item categories, using scientific statistical procedures, the Bureau has chosen samples of several hundred specific items within selected business establishments frequented by consumers to represent the thousands of varieties available in the marketplace. For example, in a given supermarket, the Bureau may choose a plastic bag of golden delicious apples, U.S. extra fancy grade, weighing 4.4 pounds to represent the Apples category.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by saphojunkie

Maybe because human beings shouldn't really be eating pork, beef, and shrimp in every region of the country every ****ing day.

Somewhere along the lines in human evolution the "fatted calf" became a daily habit.

I suppose granola and bean sprouts are what you think we "should" be eating everyday?

[KC native]

Originally Posted by Donger

Beats me.

Which is why you should never use Zerohedge as a source. They have an agenda and have no problem distorting data or releases to adhere to their "everything is a sham. you are being robbed." agenda.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by KC native

Which is why you should never use Zerohedge as a source. They have an agenda and have no problem distorting data or releases to adhere to their "everything is a sham. you are being robbed." agenda.

Noted.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by oldandslow

HFC --

Sold 10 700 lb holstein steers last week for 2.08 per hundred.

For those of you out of the know, that's 1,400 dollars for a steer that's a little over half way ready for the butcher...

The market is crazy right now. It's the reason I went ahead and sold them.

Pigs are going to get that way, but I think that is due to the virus that is killing 35% of the newborns.

I am not big farm. But now is the time to be a farm producer, imo. I am looking forward to the farmer's market season.

I thought about buying some cows and try to get in on this feeder price, but CHRIST. If you don't have them, there is no way to get in profitably.

In other news I talked to a cow calf guy, and asked him if he was retaining heifers. His response? "Every one of them." Dude has big steel balls. I'd have probably let them go. Run one more year with the old bitches and try to retain some when price goes back down some.

I guess that's why I'm not a cowboy.

[KC native]

Originally Posted by petegz28

That's exactly right. Wall St. loves to exclude food and energy for that very reason. Never mind that food and energy are things everyone uses regardless of who they are.

That's why we are getting hosed right now because the Fed Reserve is focused on the wrong things and it's policies have consequences regardless of how much some on here want to defend them.

The BLS calculates CPI. Wall Street has nothing to do with it.

How are CPI prices collected and reviewed?

Each month, BLS data collectors called economic assistants visit or call thousands of retail stores, service establishments, rental units, and doctors' offices, all over the United States, to obtain information on the prices of the thousands of items used to track and measure price changes in the CPI. These economic assistants record the prices of about 80,000 items each month, representing a scientifically selected sample of the prices paid by consumers for goods and services purchased.

During each call or visit, the economic assistant collects price data on a specific good or service that was precisely defined during an earlier visit. If the selected item is available, the economic assistant records its price. If the selected item is no longer available, or if there have been changes in the quality or quantity (for example, eggs sold in packages of ten when they previously were sold by the dozen) of the good or service since the last time prices were collected, the economic assistant selects a new item or records the quality change in the current item.

The recorded information is sent to the national office of BLS, where commodity specialists who have detailed knowledge about the particular goods or services priced review the data. These specialists check the data for accuracy and consistency and make any necessary corrections or adjustments, which can range from an adjustment for a change in the size or quantity of a packaged item to more complex adjustments based upon statistical analysis of the value of an item's features or quality. Thus, commodity specialists strive to prevent changes in the quality of items from affecting the CPI's measurement of price change.

How is the CPI calculated?

The CPI is a product of a series of interrelated samples. First, using data from the 1990 Census of Population, BLS selected the urban areas from which data on prices were collected and chose the housing units within each area that were eligible for use in the shelter component of the CPI. The Census of Population also provided data on the number of consumers represented by each area selected as a CPI price collection area. Next, another sample (of about 14,500 families each year) served as the basis for a Point-of-Purchase Survey that identified the places where households purchased various types of goods and services. More.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by Donger

Well, like I wrote, I went looking after seeing the price of shrimp had gone up dramatically and wanted to see why.

Sorry if you are offended.

Hokey pieces like this satisfied your curiosity?

[oldandslow]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

I thought about buying some cows and try to get in on this feeder price, but CHRIST. If you don't have them, there is no way to get in profitably.

In other news I talked to a cow calf guy, and asked him if he was retaining heifers. His response? "Every one of them." Dude has big steel balls. I'd have probably let them go. Run one more year with the old bitches and try to retain some when price goes back down some.

I guess that's why I'm not a cowboy.

Find a dairy, buy the bull calves (they usually don't want them), castrate them and then bottle feed. You can get in relatively cheaply that way, but it's a lot of work.