U.S. meat protein supplies
continue to expand, but product flow remains good and freezer inventories are
only marginally higher than last year, an indication that meat demand remains
in good shape, analysts said in the Daily Livestock Report,
published by The Steiner Group.
The combined inventory of beef,
pork, chicken and turkey in cold storage at the end of December was about 2.18
billion pounds, 2.4 percent higher than a year ago and 8.6 percent higher than
the five-year average.
With more meat products going
into export markets, it is reasonable to expect cold storage stocks to increase
over time, the report noted.
Beef
Total beef inventories at the
end of December were 489.5 million pounds, 13.8 percent less than last year and
just 0.7 percent higher than the five-year average.
“The main reason we see the
beef inventory number as positive or bullish for the market is because overall
beef production and imports increased during December while exports were
slightly lower,” the analysts said.
Pork
USDA reported that there were
491 million pounds of pork in cold storage at the end of December, 3.2 percent
more than a year ago but still about 6.7 percent less than the five-year
average. Normally pork stocks decline in December as retailers draw down ham
stocks for Christmas features.
This year stocks declined 2.3
percent, not as much as last year but still ahead of the five-year average pace
of 1.7 percent. “We generally view the overall pork inventory
number as neutral for that reason,” the analysts said.
Chicken
“Chicken supplies remain heavy
even as strong exports have allowed producers to quickly deplete the inventory
of leg quarters. The supply of breast meat in cold storage remains burdensome,”
the analysts said.
Total breast meat stocks were
188 million pounds, 1 percent less than last year but 23 percent above the
five-year average. Leg quarter stocks fell 18 percent from last year and 19
percent from the five-year average.