Source: MEATINGPLACE, 9/25/13


Poultry prices jumped 5.5 percent in August from a year ago, one of the biggest monthly gains in the U.S. consumer price index’s food category, USDA’s Economic Research Service said.

Pork prices climbed 1.7 percent, while beef and veal prices rose 1.6 percent. The August increases represent a surge in meat prices compared with July, when both poultry and pork prices rose 1.4 percent. Beef and veal prices had fallen 0.1 percent in July.

USDA noted a strong recovery in pork prices in recent months, which it attributed to a pickup in export demand and the persistence of record-high prices for beef, a close substitute for pork.

Prices for all food consumed at home and away from home in August were up 1.4 percent, compared with a year ago. Food at home rose 1.0 percent and food consumed away from home rose 2.0 percent. Among items consumed at home, fresh fruit and vegetables helped push up total prices, while costs for eggs, fats and oils, sugar and nonalcoholic beverages all eased.

The government raised its 2013 forecast for poultry prices to increase in a range of 3.5 to 4.5 percent. It also expects pork prices to rise more than previously forecast, at up 0.5 to 1.5 percent for the year.

It kept its forecast for beef and veal prices unchanged at up 2.0 to 3.0 percent. The food at home projection was revised downward, to up 1.0 to 2.0 percent for the year. The outlook for all food was unchanged at up 1.5 to 2.5 percent.

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