With record high cattle costs and reduced slaughter levels, beef prices continue to remain high.

As we approach the beginning of the summer grilling season, demand is expected to remain strong as consumers look to grill beef items such as burgers and steaks.

Despite elevated price levels, consumer demand remains strong and is supporting high beef prices.

With beef companies losing money and facing margin compression there is concern that reduced kills could lead to potential shortages towards the end of summer.

Heavier cattle carcass weights continue to help offset the reduced cattle supply.

With cattle being on feed longer, grading for choice, premium, and prime should remain strong for the foreseeable future. Availability for lower grades such as select continues to be limited, which has led to higher prices.

• Ground beef pricing has been increasing as we approach the start of summer when seasonal demand surges. Additionally, tariffs have resulted in higher prices for lean trim imported from Brazil, New Zealand, & Australia. 

• Ribeye pricing has softened slightly after increasing significantly this past month but is still expected to remain high with the summer grilling months approaching.     

• Striploin pricing is expected to remain at elevated levels as retailers view the strip as better value for their summer grill ad features relative to higher priced ribeyes.   

• Chuck flat pricing decreased in May due to softness in Asian export markets. In June, pricing will be decreasing further due to tariffs impacting the flow of U.S. beef to Asia.  

• Chuck Roll prices will be increasing as end cuts are being earmarked to fill grind demand.    

• Sliced beef short rib pricing continues to remain at elevated levels due to limited availability of raw material.  

• Oxtail prices have been increasing slightly due to the limited cattle supplies.   

With tight cattle supplies and continued strong consumer demand, beef prices will remain elevated.   

HPAI bird flu remains an ongoing area of concern for poultry producers, but cases have subsided significantly since the last half of 2024. 

However, HPAI has recently surfaced in Brazil which is a key exporter to many countries so there has been increased interest in U.S. poultry. This outbreak has yet to affect the domestic market significantly but is being closely monitored. 

Overall demand for chicken remains strong and consistent with increased prices across the board for almost all chicken meat parts.

• BI Thighs – Availability for BI Thighs continues to be limited as retailers continue to feature poultry heavily.    

• BL SL Thighs – BL SL Thigh prices continue to increase due to increased retail demand and high beef prices. Additionally, high breast meat prices have led to demand shifting more heavily to dark meat. 

• Legmeat – Chicken leg meat pricing remains at elevated levels and has been further supported by shifting demand from breast meat. 

• Breastmeat – Breast meat remains the costliest of all chicken parts but is under pressure as retailers look to feature dark meat more prominently for their summer grilling ads.   

• Wings – Wing prices continue to trend downward and are the only chicken part showing softness. 

• Turkey – Turkey prices are trending upward due to reduced availability and steady demand. For the remainder of the year, we should expect higher prices due to the reduced turkey supply.    

Poultry Outlook – With high beef prices, poultry remains the protein of choice for consumers seeking value and affordability. However, the chicken industry is wary of the potential impact of tariffs on key export markets. 

With high beef and chicken prices, pork remains the best value for both the retail and food service segments.  

Despite strong export and domestic demand, there remains a more than adequate inventory of hogs in the supply chain.  

With the resurgence of FMD (Foot-and-Mouth Disease) in the EU (European Union) the U.S. has filled the void to other export markets as Europe has not been producing surplus pork for export. 

• Butts– Boneless butt prices are expected to increase primarily due to strong domestic demand. Bone In butt prices will be increasing more significantly as bone in inventory is being deboned to help fill the increased boneless demand.  

• Hams– Ham demand remains strong as tariffs have not negatively impacted exports to Mexico.  Domestic demand is also expected to increase as we enter the summer months. 

• Back Ribs & Spare Ribs- Rib prices continue to increase as retailers feature ribs prominently on their front-page grilling ads. 

• Bellies- Domestic belly demand has been supporting higher prices as bacon is expected to be featured more heavily during the summer. For bellies imported from Europe, higher prices are expected due to the impact of tariffs and reduced pork availability in Europe.

Pork Outlook – With increasing seasonal demand and higher prices in competing proteins, pork prices are expected to increase as retailers feature pork more heavily in their summer ad features.   

Snow Crab (Opilio) 

• Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence season is complete. The quota was caught in a short 6 weeks. 

• Japan has not yet secured enough crab for all their needs. They will be looking towards Newfoundland. 

• Newfoundland is currently 50% through their quota, but Japan has still not stepped in to purchase. 

• Some packers are backordered for 2-3 weeks in filling orders. 

• Prices remain stable for now. Depending on when Japan steps in, that will determine when the market may shift upwards in pricing. 

Dungeness Crab  

• Prices remain high with available inventory being limited. 

• Washington, Oregon and Northern California continue fishing, but landings are slow. 

• The live market continues to consume the majority of the landings. 

Mahi Mahi 

• Taiwan and Indonesia catches have been very poor so far. 

• Many of the boats are coming back early and some have diverted fishing to other species. 

• The catches that are coming in are small sized fish. 

• All Mahi Mahi inventories are limited, especially the large fillets and portions. 

Vannmei White Shrimp (India) 

• Harvesting has is in full production. 

• Production from the new season will begin to ship in the next month or so. 

• Prices remain firm to rising slightly due to fluctuations in the markets and tariff adjustments.