Market Trends: Wholesale Pork, Beef, and Chicken Drop…Produce up 3%
Get to know how food prices have changed and where they are going with your Market Trends Report. Each week we’ll show you how both Wholesale and Commodity prices have changed. We’ll also include an analysis of how we expect Wholesale prices to change over the coming weeks to help you make the best purchasing decisions, all for free.
Market Overview
Wholesale Pork (-6.56%) continues to freefall after its meteoric rise and Beef and Chicken also fell this week. That is enough to bring the average Wholesale Price Index (-0.63%) slightly down. Produce is a different story, as the average Wholesale price is up 2.67% this week. It looks like it will be split going forward with Produce, as there is a sufficient supply in Fresh Potato and Fresh Onion, while heat and hurricanes are negatively impacting a lot of other products. Don’t get too excited about the drop in Wholesale Pork, it is still up 87% in the past 12 months.
Speaking of Produce increasing, Fresh Lettuce (+9.79%) sees a huge increase and there is another big jump in Shell Eggs (+9.57%). Fresh Bell Pepper is up 2.11% and Fresh Onion (+0.39%) is up just slightly. All of these categories have Commodity price increases as well, so expect them to continue the trend next week.
Pork Loin average Wholesale prices continue to fall, dropping 10.51%. Fresh Potato is seeing good supply which brought Wholesale down 5.00% followed by Pork Shoulder (-2.55%), Ground Beef (-2.28%), Chicken Wing (-1.41%), Beef Strip Loin (-1.01%), Cod (-0.28%), and Chicken Breast (-0.19%).
The average Commodity Price Index is relatively flat at –0.09%. Eight of the 12 categories saw Commodity increases which means next week is going to be another mixed bag. Definitely keep an eye on your Chicken Wing and Produce prices (outside of Fresh Potato and Fresh Onion).
Wholesale Price Changes
| Category | 12 Months | 3 Months | 1 Month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ground Beef | -0.6% | -4.7% | -10% |
| Shell Eggs | +76.2% | +19.1% | +30% |
| Pork Loin | +169.2% | -3.9% | -9.7% |
| Pork Shoulder | +46.1% | +60.8% | +7.6% |
| Fresh Lettuce | +12.8% | +9.7% | +19.5% |
| Fresh Potatoes | +86% | +3.7% | -5.3% |
| Chicken Breast | +22.7% | -5.4% | -1.7% |
| Fresh Bell Pepper | +59.2% | +3.9% | +1.9% |
| Fresh Onion | +85.9% | +10.8% | +4.5% |
| Beef Strip Loin | +20.7% | +35% | +10.9% |
| Chicken Wing | +1.8% | -8.6% | -2.3% |
| Cod | +42.1% | +1.3% | +2% |
| Wholesale | +52.8% | +14.5% | +15.6% |
Category Trends
Ground Beef
Wholesale (-2.28%) drops as expected but Commoodity bounces back up (+4.02%). Look for Wholesale to follow that increase next week.
Shell Eggs
Wholesale (+9.57%) continues its sharp increase. Commodity (+0.36%) flattens out so expect Wholesale to be flat to up next week.
Pork Loin
There must be oversupply from the past high prices as Wholesale (-10.51%) has another big drop. Commodity (-0.53%) is down slightly Expect Wholesale to be flat to down near term.
Pork Shoulder
Wholesale (-2.55%) continues to drop, though less so than last week. That's likely because Commodity is up 2.90%. We think Wholesale will be flat to up next week.
Fresh Lettuce
Wholesale (+9.79%) jumps as expected while Commodity also continues to rise, though at a lower rate. Everything is pointing to Wholesale to continue to go up short term.
Fresh Potatoes
Wholesale (-5.00%) drops as expected and an even bigger drop in Commodity (-8.66%) points to more decreases in the future. The market indicates there should be plenty of supply near term.
Chicken Breast
Another flat week for Wholesale (-0.19%) as Commodity unexpectedly falls 3.09%. Would expect that leads to Wholesale being flat to down next week.
Fresh Bell Pepper
There may be some supply issues on the horizon as Wholesale jumps 2.11%. Commodity is just up 0.38% so we think next week's increase will be less.
Fresh Onion
Last week's Commodity crash at least kept Wholesale (+0.39%) flat this week. Commodity increased 2.11%, but general consensus is that supply will increase and that will likely keep prices down short term.
Beef Strip Loin
Wholesale (-1.01%) finally comes down a bit while Commodity (+1.31%) increases slightly. Expect Wholesale to be flat near term unless there is another spike in Commodity.
Chicken Wing
Wholesale (-1.41%) unexpectedly drops, but Commodity spiked 13.76%! Expect your Wholesale prices to start increasing and price accordingly.
Cod
Big drop in Commodity (-7.61%) pulls down Wholesale (-0.28%) slightly. If trends continue, Commodity will be up next week with Wholesale slightly less so.
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