Cattle save the balance sheet

According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 48.20 mill. t of beef, pork, sheep, chicken and turkey were commercially produced; that was 122,000 t, or 0.3%, more than in 2020. The mini-increase was primarily due to higher beef production, which grew by 346,100 t, or 2.8%, to 12.67 mill. t. To achieve this, 33.84 million head of cattle were processed; this was 1.05 million head or 3.2% more than the previous year. Continuing to increase, although not as much as before, was US chicken meat production. A moderate increase of 135,000 t, or 0.7%, to 20.36 mill. t set a new production record. This was not matched for hog production, unlike 2020.

The number of pigs slaughtered decreased by 2.59 million head or 2% to just under 129 million head in the year under review. With slaughter weights down slightly, pork production fell by 285,300 t, or 2.2%, to 12.55 mill. t; thus, pork production again fell behind beef, with chicken meat remaining the undisputed leader. Among other meats, turkey meat production fell 2.6% from 2020 to just under 2.54 mill. t. In addition, the amount of sheep and lamb meat produced at slaughter plants fell 0.8% to 62,600 t. For the current year, USDA expects beef production to decline 2.8% and pork 0.6%, according to the latest estimate. In contrast, chicken meat production is expected to increase 1.8%.