October 14

10/14 - With beef prices sky-high, chicken is proliferating on menus across the country. That’s putting pressure on poultry producers to step up production more quickly. After struggling with breeder (rooster) fertility problems in 2022 & 2023, the industry finally appears to be turning the corner. For Q3 2024, the number of eggs being set in incubators was up 3.7% from a year ago. That number was just 1.1% for the first half of 2024. The numbers of chicks being placed for grow-out was up 2.4% in Q3 2024 vs 0.6% in the first half of the year. Feed prices are helping. Corn futures that averaged $6.94 per bushel in 2022 and $5.64 in 2023, are now down to $4.15 (10/11). Soymeal that averaged $440 per hundred short tons in 2022 & 2023 is $316. In Friday’s WASDE report, the USDA lowered its 2024 chicken (broiler) output forecast from 1.6% to 1.5% over a year ago, but it raised 2025 projected gains from 1.2% to 1.6%.