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-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
Hog-Culling Next As Meatpacking Plants Shutter Operations Stoking Food Shortage Fears In Weeks
2020-04-26
[Zero Hedge] Steve Meyer, an economist at consultant Kerns & Associates, said hog farmers don't have extra pens and feed yards, that is why many of them are starting to cull herds. He said overcapacity is everywhere in the farming industry and resulted in the dumping of products:

"Nobody wants to do this," Meyer said. "It's not as easy as dumping milk on the ground like the dairy guys do. It's not as easy as breaking eggs in a broiler operation and eight weeks later having fewer birds on the market. We have a 10 month chain from the time until the pigs hit the market."

Food shortages could occur "two weeks from now in the retail outlets," warned Dennis Smith, a senior account executive at Archer Financial Services.
Posted by:KBK

#19  Even the King Arthur Flour website is out of yeast at the moment. But Cooks Illustrated has a recipe for a sourdough starter that does not waste pounds of flour in the process, James. Link
Posted by: trailing wife   2020-04-26 20:41  

#18  Yeast. Apparently that sees seasonal peaks, and it hard to ramp up production
Posted by: James   2020-04-26 18:57  

#17  Speaking of pigs, here is a song about four wet pigs by Greg Brown.

Here's a little song about four wet pigs,
Just a little song about four wet pigs.
Two are little, two are big,
They're all dancin' at the Mudtown Jig.

The two that're little, little as an ear of corn,
Two that're big are bigger than a barn,
Bigger than a barn, taller than a tree,
When they go to the factory.

Cut 'em into bacon, slice 'em into ham,
Chop 'em into hot dogs, squeeze 'em into Spam.
Throw their little eyes out in the rain,
Throw their little eyes out in the rain,
Throw their beady little piggy eyes out into the rain,
Pickle their feet and pickle their brains.
(Oooogh.)

Here's a little story about two wet pigs,
Standin' at the slop trough smokin' their cigs.
Wishin' to god they'd never get big,
Dancin' out their hearts,
Dancin' out their hearts,
Dancin' out their hearts at the Mudtown Jig.
(Dance little piggies.)
Posted by: Alaska Paul   2020-04-26 18:06  

#16  The biggest shortages are in convenience foods -- the easier it is to prepare, the harder it is to find. Pastas, rice, canned vegetables, beans -- those are were I still see empty shelves. Pre-made (heat and eat) food seems to be under stress; spot shortages of some things, but that varied from store to store. Based on what's being promoted, producers may be favoring "family size" packages, but I'm not sure supply chains and promotions have been able to react that fast.

Produce looks fine. I'm not an early shopper, and I can still find what I need.

Both shops had plenty of paper goods, including name brands.

The first few weeks cheaper beef and any chicken were hard to find, but that seems to have shaken out.

I shop twice each week -- once for my dad and once for myself. I hit a national chain store and a local store; if absolutely necessary I'll stop at another just to get what my dad wants. This week the only substitution was picking a different brand, and I had to pick up one item with my shopping. For myself, I grab usually have a list, but if necessary I can adapt to what's available.

I've never had to touch any preps, even the emergency reserve toilet paper.
Posted by: Rob Crawford   2020-04-26 17:39  

#15  A contact in Europe says the local grocery store is fully stocked with "bath tissue".

That's cause they don't give a shit.
Posted by: Skidmark   2020-04-26 17:01  

#14  About the only thing I'm seeing an improvement in is facial tissue and in more than one shop. I did witness paper towels once. And TP once in Walmart, a very very cheap (generic) version. But, they had some....one and only time.
Posted by: Clem   2020-04-26 11:23  

#13  Shelves were full of everything paper, except TP, which was only half full yesterday. Meat counters, dairy, all full
Posted by: Frank G   2020-04-26 11:19  

#12  A contact in Europe says the local grocery store is fully stocked with "bath tissue". Not one hint of hoarding or supply issues. The only thing (generally) is that prices have gone up on some items. NFI.
Posted by: Clem   2020-04-26 11:08  

#11  Ought to be more toilet paper.
Posted by: JohnQC   2020-04-26 11:04  

#10  All stuff to be sacrificed to moloch magic numbers.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2020-04-26 10:37  

#9  Excess milk, eggs, chicks, potatoes, piggies, babies, Grom?
Posted by: Skidmark   2020-04-26 09:40  

#8  Meat packing workers seem to avoid e. coli for the most part though tons of meat products are thrown away every year because of e. coli contamination.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2020-04-26 09:33  

#7  #6 I must admit that, given the overall context, you comment caused some - fairly unpleasant - associations, P2k.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2020-04-26 08:49  

#6  ...the one that dumps hundreds of thousands of premmies into the dumpster because its a woman's right?
Posted by: Procopius2k   2020-04-26 08:16  

#5  What country are we living in? Why are we tolerating this idiocy?

To be safe from infection, people working in meat packing plant need PPE as good as the one medical personnel is using. Plus frequent breaks and a places to spend these breaks - because one can't function very long in protective clothing. Plus daily checkups. You decide what kind of country you're living in.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2020-04-26 03:49  

#4  There's an ideal time to slaughter hogs or beef cattle, but you can adjust feeding schedules and cut back on breeding and go on from there.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2020-04-26 01:32  

#3  The processors are dragging their feet to try to keep prices up -- two weeks ago they were complaining the restaurants weren't open so the choice cuts of beef weren't selling at their regular price.

The closures I've heard about account for maybe 10% of the national capacity -- a pain, but not crippling.

And remember -- food processing is a key industry. They've never been shut down.
Posted by: Rob Crawford   2020-04-26 01:20  

#2  Madness. What is this, the Soviet Famine of 1921?

What country are we living in? Why are we tolerating this idiocy?
Posted by: Lex   2020-04-26 01:17  

#1  Probably pick up a couple racks of ribs at Sam's on Monday.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2020-04-26 00:47  

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