Beef prices hit record highs. Four ways to save.
As you prepare for BBQ season, the cost to throw a steak on the grill has never been higher鈥攁nd that price doesn鈥檛 look to come down anytime soon.
A spike in beef prices has a greater immediate impact on the family wallet than that of most food items because, economists say, beef is a single-ingredient item. Rises in wheat or corn prices aren鈥檛 immediately felt in, say, the cost of a box of cereal because of the mix of ingredients inside, but there鈥檚 no buffer with a rise in the cost of beef鈥攊t is felt immediately at the market.
The cost of 鈥渁ll-fresh鈥� USDA choice-grade beef in February reached a聽, compared to $4.91 at the same time last year and $3.97 in 2008. That鈥檚 the highest price for beef since 1987. The cost of聽聽in February, up 56% since 2010.
Years of drought in cattle country have聽. And the rising fortunes and appetites for U.S. beef in Asia,聽, have raised the competition over who will get American steaks. Analysts at Rabobank reckon the growth in global beef demand will continue to come mainly from China, where the domestic production of meat can鈥檛 meet rising demand.
And prices will likely remain high as ranchers struggle to replenish herds and as rain levels in ranching states raise questions whether pastures can support an increase,聽.
鈥淲e鈥檝e seen strong prices before, but nothing this extreme,鈥� Dennis Smith, a commodities broker for Archer Financial Services in Chicago, told the Los Angeles Times. 鈥淭his is really new territory.鈥�
What can you do?
Rising international demand and extreme weather will hit U.S. food prices in the coming year鈥攖he USDA expects all food costs to rise between 2.5% and 3.5% in 2014. We鈥檙e already seeing the effect of rising beef costs as chains such as McDonald鈥檚 have聽聽and restaurants begin serving聽smaller cuts of meat and alternative choices聽such as turkey burgers.
Choosing chicken, turkey or fish is one way many shoppers can beat rising meat costs. 鈥淚t does seem like consumers are making the choice to get the ground turkey instead of ground beef, or the filet of salmon instead of the filet of beef,鈥� Richard Volpe, a research economist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture,聽recently.
If you鈥檙e a meat lover, it may be time to explore alternative cuts of meat rather than your favored sirloin. Daniel Vaughn, the barbecue editor for Texas Monthly magazine,聽he recommends聽beef chuck short ribs, beef back ribs and shoulder clod, a less tender shoulder cut. But those cuts take longer to prepare on low heat to cook up just right. 鈥淕o low and slow,鈥� Vaughn says鈥攁s long as eight hours on the grill.
Meat typically goes on sale for a week at a time, so stock up your freezer when a sale hits your store,Marketwatch. Keep a list of sale prices as a benchmark, and resupply only when the cost of meat nears that mark.
The fact that U.S. cattle herds are at their lowest level in more than 50 years speaks to the rising efficiency of agriculture: We get more meat out of each animal than ever before. So why don鈥檛 you explore buying a whole (or part of a) cow?
Investing in meat shares鈥攇roup purchase of whole, half and quarter animals broken down into individual cuts鈥攁re rising in popularity. You can explore resources such as聽meat CSAs聽(that鈥檚 community-supported agriculture), often built around locally and ethically sourced meat. Online groups such as聽t can help you find CSAs near you.
Illustration by Brian Yee.
