Friday’s USDA Cold Storage report showed that total meat supplies in US freezers on Nov. 30 were down about 6% from a month earlier but up close to 4% from a year ago.
Total pounds of beef in freezers were down slightly from Oct. 31 but up about 6% from last year.
Frozen pork supplies were down approximately 11% from the previous month but up about 1% from last year. Stocks of pork bellies were up close to 38% from last month and up about 5% from last year.
BEEF SUPPLIES HOLD ABOVE LAST YEAR
Total beef supplies in cold storage, at 514.720 million pounds, were down 864,000, or 0.17%, from 515.584 million a month earlier but were up 29.533 million, or 6.09%, from 485.187 million a year ago.
The November dip in beef stocks last year did not occur this year. Still, the 2012-2016 average usually climbs moderately in November, so a slight month-to-month decline isn’t all that unusual.
Boneless beef in cold storage on Nov. 30 was reported at 473.868 million pounds, up 5.447 million, or 1.16%, from 468.421 million a month earlier and up 29.941 million, or 6.74%, from 443.927 million a year earlier.
Beef cuts in cold storage at the end of November totaled 514.720 million pounds, 864,000, or 0.17%, below 515.584 million a month earlier but up 29.533 million, or 6.09%, from 485.187 million a year earlier.
PORK POUNDAGE UP FROM 2017
The total pounds of pork in cold storage came to 507.557 million pounds, down 63.337 million, or 11.1%, from 570.894 million a year ago but up 5.233 million, or 1.04%, from 502.324 million on Nov. 30, 2017. This continued a seasonal trend toward lower stocks at the end of the year.
Hams in cold storage amounted to 96.380 million pounds, down 79.705 million, or 45.3%, from 176.085 million a month earlier and down 1.844 million, or 1.88%, from 98.224 million a year earlier.
The total amount of pork ribs in cold storage was 108.325 million pounds, up 6.955 million, or 6.86%, from 101.370 million at the end of October and up 8.107 million, or 8.09%, from 100.218 million a year earlier.
CHICKEN STOCKS RISE FROM 2017
Total supplies of chicken on ice Nov. 30 came to 935.193 million, down 5.427 million, or 0.58%, from 940.620 million on Oct. 31, but up 38.591 million, or 4.30%, from 896.602 million a year earlier.
Breasts and breast meat in freezers amounted to 186.648 million pounds, up 2.520 million, or 1.37%, from 184.128 million a month earlier and up 2.636 million, or 1.43%, from 184.012 million a year earlier.
Leg quarters amounted to 70.076 million pounds, below last month’s 90.703 million and well below last year’s 113.777 million.
CATTLE, BEEF RECAP
No fed cattle traded last Wednesday on the Fed Cattle Exchange Video Auction. The previous week, 97 head sold at an average price of $119 per cwt, up $1.17 from a week earlier.
Cash cattle traded last week at $119 per cwt on a live basis, steady with the previous week, and at $190 dressed in eastern Nebraska, up $2.
The USDA choice cutout Friday was up $1.58 per cwt at $214.05, while select was up $2.24 at $207.50. The choice/select spread narrowed to $6.55 from $7.21 with 51 loads of fabricated product sold into the spot market.
No delivery notices were served for Dec live cattle.
The CME Feeder Cattle index for the seven days ended Friday, was $147.13 per cwt, up $1.24. This compares with Monday’s Jan settlement of $147.37, up $0.02.