Meat Prices Soar

[RockofStrength]

The Feds are still mandating the use of corn that could be animal feed into poor grade motor fuel. The costs of ethanol production is more than it can bring in the open market. This has driven the price of animal feed sky high, and that results in higher priced meat. So taxpayers loose 3 times; 1) To subsidize the production of ethanol, 2) higher feed, thus higher meat prices, 3) forced to purchase fuel that has less energy per gallon, and is harder on your car.

What a great plan that our genius government has implemented in our behalf!

Just one part of the web, in truth, and honestly not that big of one. The fact that our beef is still trying to recover from the Texas droughts, many ranchers farther West are suffering from the current California drought, and the piglet plague (the name of the actual disease escapes me) hitting our pork, there are plenty of "natural causes" to be chalked up.

 

[mrjarrell]

RoS is correct. Government interference and policies are way down at the bottom of the list for what has caused this. Lack of rain and grass, disease and other factors come well before any .gov interference.

 

[Leadeye]

Squirrel, deer and rabbit.

 

[Hardscrable]

High grain (feed) prices are history...prices below the cost of production are here and sticking around for at least a couple years. Texas drought a couple years back caused breeding stock to be liquidated. Will take years of profitable cattle market to rebuild herd to previous level. Extremely high mortality rate due to disease is playing havoc in hog production. Several years of high (record) meat exports. Higher energy costs from farm to supermarket. Devalued dollar thanks to your "favorite uncle." Plus multiple other factors.

 

[RockofStrength]

For those interested in raising some manner of meat to counteract this, I cannot recommend chickens enough. They are stupid simple to care for and give both eggs and meat for your table. Obviously check your laws (odds are any city/suburb/town is going to ban roosters on principle) but plenty of areas that were once closed to small livestock have opened up in recent years.

 

[ruger1800]

KELOLAND.com | Thousands Of Cattle Dead In Blizzard

 

[danmdevries]

I haven't looked too deeply into it, but as of last year my expected cost to raise and butcher vs cost to buy butchered/wrapped/frozen on a whole hog still didn't make sense to add hogs to our yard.

Doubled our chickens last spring though.

 

[forgop]

Picked up a 1/4 of beef a few weeks ago and picking up 429 lbs worth of pork (live weight) tomorrow. Another side of beef lined up for October.

 

[DeadeyeChrista'sdad]

Hunt and raise our own. Price is pretty stable

DUDE! You hunt beef? Where, (besides Jay county) can one do that?

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Goats are easy to raise, slaughter, and are tasty. So are chickens. Seems like we've done this thread before.

 

[HeadlessRoland]

Goats are easy to raise, slaughter, and are tasty. So are chickens. Seems like we've done this thread before.

Only about a million different times in a million different ways. What's one million and one discussions about the same topic between friends?

 

[ghuns]

I haven't looked too deeply into it, but as of last year my expected cost to raise and butcher vs cost to buy butchered/wrapped/frozen on a whole hog still didn't make sense to add hogs to our yard.

Yeah, that and you won't have a yard left.

We raise a few for the kids to take to the fair. It always makes economic sense for the kids. Dad, not so much.

 

[remauto1187]

To lighten up the food bill, just get ahold of one of us hunters (the ones that hit what they shoot at) and ask one of us for a deer. It costs me nothing to hunt on my own land.....except for the cost of a shell/cartridge. I can always spare a doe. I usually take 3-4 deer a season....I can make it 5 or 6.