Ask economists and industry analysts, and many of them will tell you 2017 very well may have been the best year the meat and poultry industries have ever had. Further, many have 2018 projected to be a successful follow-up to 2017’s chart-topping string of hits. The reason? Low feed costs coupled with strong domestic demand, rising prices and adequate supply created a profitable formula that is expected by those analysts to carry into 2018.
“The underlying factor is that grain costs are decreasing and stable,” says David Williams, vice president of Informa Economics IEG, Memphis, Tenn. “This allows feeding operations to create and follow a plan without price risks.”