In the US, the price of beef is increasingly difficult to digest

Your shopping cart is full, but there is no trace of steak. “Too expensive,” Lisa, a mother, said as she walked out of a Giant supermarket in Washington. In U.Sland of barbecues and grills, the beef it is becoming a luxury.

Inflation rose 7% in 2021, something not seen since 1982. And January data, released Thursday, is expected to show it may have accelerated further.

American shoppers saw prices for meat, poultry, fish and eggs rise 12.5% ​​last year, while beef soared as much as 23%, according to the cut.

On the shelves of the Giant in the Van Ness neighborhood, where Lisa does her shopping, only ground beef remains affordable. If not, you have to pay up to US$24.99 per pound (453 grams) for a piece of quality beef.

At a butcher shop in posh Georgetown, the equivalent even sells for $37.99.

“I buy mostly chicken and sausage,” says Lisa, 48, a mother of three teenagers, who only wanted to be identified by her first name.

“Combination of several factors”

Jayson Lusk, a professor at Purdue University in the state of Indiana, explained that meat prices skyrocketed “as a result of a combination of several factors.”

“Foreign buyers of US beef, particularly China, have shown strong demand as have domestic consumers,” Lusk said.

At the same time, he noted, wages in the meatpacking industry have risen nearly 20% since the start of the pandemic, amid a nationwide worker shortage that has also affected manufacturing and transportation.

Last year, Americans continued to eat beef enthusiastically thanks to government aid, which increased their savings and purchasing power. But now eating a steak is out of the question for many low-income families.

Concern for Biden

This last week, Tyson Foods, the largest meat processor in the United States, justified these price increases by the fact that demand continues to exceed its production capacity due to lack of labor.

He also highlighted increased salaries and benefits to hire and retain staff.

During the last three months of 2021, Tyson marked an average price increase for beef of around 33% compared to the same period in 2020, and around 20% for chicken.

“In a family, this definitely has an impact,” said Jay Smith, another Giant customer. Although he lives alone, he has also reduced his consumption of beef and is aware of the promotions, “mainly chicken” and “fried chicken”.

The rise in beef prices worries even the White House, which rejects the idea that it is solely a consequence of the pandemic. President Joe Biden blames a lack of competition in the sector.

In this $213 billion industry, just four companies control 85% of beef processing and 54% of poultry, the White House said in January, promising to address the problem and launching investigations to ensure There is a price agreement.

Affected Consumers

Meanwhile, restaurants are adapting, to the detriment of their customers.

“Half of the establishments we surveyed in January have already reduced the size of their menus and increased the prices of their dishes,” said Sean Jafar of Dataessentials, which tracks some 5,000 menus representing a wide range of American restaurants.

Among fast-food restaurants, most are trying to keep prices low, but have had to reduce portion sizes, even for chicken, which is less expensive than beef.

At Domino’s, the price of one of its flagship “chicken wings” menus stayed at $7.99. But, the box now has only eight pieces instead of the usual ten and is only available for sale online.

This price increase may be an opportunity to “eat healthier” by reducing meat consumption, says Giant customer Jay Smith.

For now, Americans remain among the world’s largest consumers of beef. They ate 59.1 pounds (26.81 kilos) per person last year, up from 58.4 pounds in 2020.