Beef prices hit record levels in Canada
These days in Canada, all it takes is a visit to the meat section of a supermarket to realize that becoming a vegetarian is a new possibility.
The price of ground beef, steaks and roasts has continued to rise this year, reaching record highs at supermarkets.
Retail beef prices fluctuate regularly, but have generally increased in recent years.
The price increase comes just before the busiest period for many supermarkets and butchers, ahead of the Christmas season.
"I've been working here for quite a while and these are probably the highest prices I've ever seen", said Jim Jackson, owner of Cut Rite Meats in Calgary.
Beef prices have risen at a faster rate than pork and chicken, he said, and some customers have cut back on their orders slightly.
"Our profits at the end of the day are down. I don't want to take money from customers. We're just trying to do the best we can", Jackson said of his shrinking profit margins from beef sales.
Retail prices also reflect the rise in cattle values, which reached record levels this year.
Overall, grocery store food prices have risen 2.7 per cent over the past 12 months, according to the latest data released by Statistics Canada.
In September, a kilo of ground beef sold for about $13, compared with $11.69 a year ago and $9 a kilo five years ago.
Beef tenderloin cuts rose to more than $32 per kilo in September, after selling for around $20 in December 2023.
In Alberta, cattle prices rose 7.6 per cent in September compared to the same month in 2023, rising to $236.08 per hundredweight, according to Statistics Canada. Five years ago, slaughtered cattle sold for about $130 per hundredweight.
"We're in a time of record prices", said Brenna Grant, chief executive of Canfax, a Canadian beef statistics company based in Calgary.
Some feeder animals are selling for 21 percent more than last year's prices, Grant said, while average cattle prices are up 45 to 65 percent compared with prices five years ago.
"We have to remember that globally we have a growing population, a growing middle class that wants more protein. It's not just beef, it's pork and poultry. Consumers want more of that product", said Brenna Grant, director of Canfax.
On the other hand, the number of cattle in the country has decreased in recent years as many ranchers faced increasing expenses, such as feed costs, due to drought conditions.
Canada's cattle population is currently the lowest it has been since 1987.
"Beef is a tricky commodity because no one can control the supply of beef in the short term", said Ellen Goddard, an agricultural economist and professor emeritus at the University of Alberta.
Cow-calf ranchers on the prairies largely make decisions about how many cows they're going to keep in their herd, and that determines how many calves they're going to have, and that determines how much beef supply we're going to have two and a half years from now. So there's this long biological lag in production.
Declining livestock numbers have resulted in less beef available for sale in supermarkets and butcher shops in Canada.
"The industry is now in full liquidation mode and as a result, supplies are lower and, as expected, prices are higher", said Kevin Grier, a livestock market analyst.
Some ranchers are considering increasing their herds again as their profit margins have improved.
Strong consumer demand for roasts and ground beef in North America is also contributing to rising prices.
"Canadians and Americans are continuing to eat more beef", Grier said. "We have at least another year, perhaps until 2026, of very limited beef supply. Beef cuts continue to sell even at record prices because they are often considered the highest quality and most desirable meat. Beef is the Cadillac", he said.
During the first half of 2024, German consumers' preference for the quality of Spanish Serrano ha...
Salmon is an important part of the French festive season. And to make sure that the French consum...
Launched in 2022, the project aimed to define an environmental policy for the Parma Ham sect...
