While the European pig sector has been stuck with bacon supplies since the devaluation of the British pound, there is a risk of a bacon shortage in the US. Bacon is extremely popular during ‘the American breakfast’ and therefore frozen stocks have dwindled considerably in the past year.
Figures from the USDA, the US Department of Agriculture, show that the stock of pork belly, at about 8.000 tons, is at its lowest level in 50 years. Thanks to good demand, the bacon supply in the US has shrunk by more than 2016 tons in 16.000, and there is therefore a risk of a shortage. In any case, the frozen stocks of pork decreased considerably last year. In the last two months of the year alone, volumes plummeted by 18.500 tons. A logical explanation for the rapid decline is the export figures of the American pig sector, which have recorded record export volumes since the second half of 2016.
Despite a looming bacon shortage, the Ohio Pork Council doesn't expect it to pick up that fast. The agency says that the American pig population - and the slaughter figures by extension - are writing record numbers, while the price of bacon is rising. The USDA expects pork production to increase by 2017 percent in 5,1.
Incidentally, the pig sector in the US has responded positively to President Trump's efforts to strengthen historic ties with Great Britain and to strive for a free trade agreement. Whether such a trade agreement will boost pork export figures, however, remains to be seen. Historically, little American pork is shipped to Great Britain. From October 2015 to October 2016, the trading land was just $3,7 million. Given the impending bacon shortage in the US, there seems to be no match between the British demand for bacon and the supply in America. A
© DCA Market Intelligence. This market information is subject to copyright. It is not permitted to reproduce, distribute, disseminate or make the content available to third parties for compensation, in any form, without the express written permission of DCA Market Intelligence.