You might have noticed that bacon prices are on the rise. Today prices on fresh pork bellies spiked to $1.35 a lb.- this is up over 50% from last year's pricing. What is causing this sudden increase?
MeatPoultry.com offers some insight:
In 2008 and 2009, North American hog producers decided to cut their losses by trimming their herds; this move is now impacting cost pressures faced by supermarkets. Hog farmers were losing money due to high feed prices, a decrease in global demand in the wake of the recession, as well as panic surrounding the H1N1 influenza virus, which initially had been erroneously called "swine flu."Pair this with the summer demand for bacon (in those great BLT sandwiches), and you have a perfect storm for high prices.
Is there an end in sight? Not for the next few weeks according to Paul Beere, a market adviser at Prime Agricultural Services in Brookfield, Wisconsin. Via Bloomberg: "The bacon market will probably lead pork products higher for the next several weeks."
