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The cutout will continue to soften this week. Upper 2/3 light ribs, strips, hanging tenders and peeled outside skirts continue to be in tight supply.
Lent kicks off next Wednesday, 3/5, and will last until Friday, 4/17. Please be prepared for the increase in seafood consumption.
Most offerings are seeing tighter supply because of increased demand, smaller birds, and winter weather closing plants. Breasts of all sizes are seeing BIG increases in demand. Tenders demand has increased. Wings are readily available. Thigh meat demand is picking up. Whole birds stayed mostly balanced.
Ham continues to climb with strong domestic and export demand. Bellies continue to increase rapidly which will continue to impact bacon pricing. Trim continues to climb due to limited spot market availability. Butts and Loins are following normal trends. Ribs are flat, though back ribs remain inflationary over prior years.
For the fourth week in a row, packers have continued to keep the kills curtailed. The live market has also continued to trend lower. Demand continues to be below anticipated levels, but the curtailed slaughtered levels causing the shorter supply has finally started to help bottom out some parts of the carcass. Again, outside cuts and grinds continue to trade lower this week.
Shell egg markets are up this week and California eggs are up. HPAI remains the major variable, with APHIS now reporting that 11.3 million birds have been affected this month alone. The Block & Barrel are down. Butter is up.
The main causes for the volatility in soybean oil are exports are down from the last couple of months, dryness has pressured the market for Argentina's soybean crop, increases in demand for biofuels, flat supplies in the US for soybean oil stocks, and planting intensions for corn vs. soybeans is favoring corn. Palm and Canola are higher.
Steady volume, with later fields opening. Market is flat. A bit of cooler temperatures over the weekend, causing larger sizing to be somewhat shorter. Movement is good. Quality remains excellent.
East – Green supply good, quality excellent, and the market is steady. Red and yellow supply steady, quality excellent, demand strong, the market is increasing.
West – Market firming up. Supply is steady, quality good. Green supplies expected to tighten up as hothouse supply diminishes.
Market is softer as supplies begin to improve with warmer temps. Quality is reported as fair to good.
Market is steady with good supplies and moderate demand. Quality is reported as good.
Market mostly steady with good supplies and demand. Quality is reported as good.
Market is steady on Cilantro and parsley with moderate to good demand. Quality reported as fair for cilantro and fair to good on the parsleys.
The market is a bit lower as warmer weather continues to help with yields. Quality is reported as good.
The market is steady, with good supplies expected into next week on Romaine. Hearts steady currently. Quality is reported as fair to good on both.
Supplies are good in the N West. Some shippers are pushing to end early which has reduced pricing. Demand remains steady. Quality is good, with good sizing. Prices are steady.
Supplies are good and look to be so thru the season. Sizing is heavy to large with most growers being lighter on small sizes. Quality is good. Markets are holding steady.
East – zucchini is plentiful, quality is excellent, demand fair and market is steady. Yellow squash supply good, quality good, demand good and the market is steady.
West – strong supplies this week, next week regional shift will cause lighter volume and should increase market.
Round, roma, grape, & cherry markets remain stable with good availability and quality both east and west. Quality is good on all varieties.
Mexico supplies good, quality is excellent, demand fair to good, and the market is steady to slightly lower. California supplies are light, quality is good, demand is good, and the market is steady to slightly lower.
Supplies are light but demand is getting covered. Some ripener’s are behind and shipping greener fruit. 150 Ct petites are limited from some.
Lemons – Supplies are plentiful, quality is excellent, demand is fair to good, and the market is steady. All sizes available and quality is excellent.
Oranges – Supplies are good, quality is excellent, demand is good, and the market is steady. Large sizes are in limited quantities.
Limes – Supplies are steady, quality is fair to good, demand is fair, and the market is steady. 110/150s continue to tighten up as the new crop is peaking on 175/200/230s.
Good supplies and quality in the East and the West. Expected to remain steady for the next several weeks.
Supplies are tight, quality is fair to good, demand is strong, and the market is steady to slightly lower. 6/7s seem to be the shortest in supply. Expect supplies to remain tight through Easter.
Supplies are recovering from rain in California and Florida. Mexico is experiencing weather now. Overall supplies have improved. Quality is good in California and Florida, but we are seeing minor issues in Mexico. Prices are lower.
