LUBBOCK, Texas (RFD News) — Retail beef prices climbed sharply in July even as wholesale Choice beef values fell below year-ago levels, widening the downstream spread consumers are paying. USDA Economic Research Service data show Choice beef averaged $10.49 per pound at retail, up from $9.69 last July.
Wholesale Choice beef averaged about $5.58 per pound, down from $5.72 a year earlier. That pushed the wholesale-to-retail spread to roughly $4.91 per pound from $3.97, an increase of about 24%.
Cattle producers are still receiving stronger prices. Five-market steer prices averaged about $240.80 per hundredweight, up roughly 5% from last year, while the farm-to-wholesale spread narrowed to about 21 cents from 56 cents.
The retail spread is not the same as retailer profit. It also includes labor, transportation, refrigeration, packaging, shrink, merchandising, and other downstream costs.
Still, July’s divergence is notable: cattle prices were higher, wholesale beef was lower, and retail beef was substantially higher. The farmer’s share of the Choice retail dollar slipped to 51.1% from 53.3% a year ago.
