The pandemic continues to impact domestic and global beef demand, but supply is approaching normal.
In early May, the wholesale boxed beef trade shot up to $475 dollars per hundredweight because of reduced slaughter capacity. Now, the market is back down by more than $200 dollars. Economist Glenn Tonsor says that supply is no longer putting pressure on the market.
According to Tonsor, “When we get to the number of animals processed this past week...initial estimates say, through Saturday, 664 thousand head of cattle. That puts us down about 6 percent compared to say number last year, cumulative for the year, year-to-date, but we’re actually ahead of where we were last year for that particular week...We’re no longer at a tight supply, production story when it comes to beef volume.”