Los Angeles, CA, Nov. 23, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Due to accelerating turkey meat price, Thanksgiving dinner this year will cost Americans significantly more than the previous one, a report published by market research firm IndexBox states. According to the USDA data, the average price for fresh whole body turkeys in November 2021 was $1.46 per pound, which is 9% more than the previous year. The price for frozen whole body turkeys came to $1.36 per pound, a 20% increase in comparison to 2020.
The average cost of organic fresh whole body turkeys totalled $3.24 per pound, +4.8% compared to November 2020, while organic frozen whole body turkeys were $3.30 per pound (+23%). On average antibiotic-free fresh whole body turkeys cost $2.37 per pound, a decrease of 7%, at the same time, frozen whole body turkeys are going for $3.30 per pound - twice the gains compared to November 2020.
The increase in turkey prices is caused by solid demand running into a 6% y-o-y drop in butchered turkeys to 4.6M tonnes, due in part to a deficit of workers. The turkey market size in 2020 totalled 2.4M tonnes, while this year, it is expected to decrease to about 2.3M tonnes.
Turkey prices are soaring in the broader context of unprecedented inflation for food products. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, October prices for meats, poultry, fish and eggs grew by 11.9% in comparison with October 2020, which is the fastest rate of price increases in the past 30 years.
It is unlikely that imports will offset the short supply of turkeys. In 2021, imports remained at comparable levels to the previous year and from January through September consisted of 7K tonnes, accounting for about 0.4% of U.S. consumption. In monetary terms, imports totalled $19.6M, having grown by 7% in comparison with the same period in 2020. Canada makes up 80% of American imports, together with Chile being the only suppliers of turkeys to the U.S.
U.S. Turkey Exports
In 2020, U.S. exports of turkey meat from the U.S. contracted to 214K tonnes, with a decrease of -11.8% compared with 2019. In value terms, turkey meat exports shrank from $483M to $416M, IndexBox estimates.
Mexico (135K tonnes) was the main destination for turkey meat exports from the U.S., accounting for a 63% share of total exports. Moreover, turkey meat exports to Mexico exceeded the volume sent to the second major destination, China (17K tonnes), eightfold. The third position in this ranking was taken by Guatemala (4.8K tonnes), with a 2.2% share.
In value terms, Mexico ($262M) remains the key foreign market for turkey meat exports from the U.S., followed by China ($27M), with a 6.6% share, and the Dominican Republic, with a 2.6% share.
From 2010 to 2020, the average annual growth rate of value to Mexico (+0.2% per year) was relatively modest. Exports to the other major destinations recorded the following average annual rates of exports growth: China (-3.0% per year) and the Dominican Republic (+0.2% per year).
In 2020, the average turkey meat export price amounted to $1,945 per tonne, with a decrease of -2.4% against the previous year. There were significant differences in the average prices for the major export markets. In 2020, the country with the highest price was the Dominican Republic ($2,434 per tonne), while the average price for exports to Jamaica ($1,195 per tonne) was amongst the lowest. Over the past decade, the most notable rate of growth in terms of prices was recorded for supplies to China, while the prices for the other major destinations experienced more modest paces of growth.
About IndexBox
IndexBox is a market research firm developing an AI-driven market intelligence platform that helps business analysts find actionable insights and make data-driven decisions. The platform provides data on consumption, production, trade, and prices for more than 10K+ different products across 200 countries.
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Companies Mentioned in the Report
Butterball, Jennie-O Turkey Store, Cargill, Farbest Foods, Tyson Foods, Cooper Farms, Dakota Provisions, Foster Farms, Hain Pure Protein Corp, Jaindl Turkey Sales, Koch’s Turkey Farm, Kraft Foods, Norbest, Northern Pride Turkey, Perdue Farms, House of Raeford Farms, Prestage Farms, Virginia Poultry Growers Cooperative, West Liberty Foods, Zacky Farms
Sources
U.S. - Turkey Meat - Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights
World - Turkey Meat - Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights
U.S. - Fresh or Chilled Cuts Of Turkey - Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights
World - Poultry - Market Analysis, Forecast, Size, Trends and Insights
