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Is there a huge difference between the price of beef and pork?
Just curious... I went to Publix today and they had a meat and vegetable mix for sale - sitting right next to each other they had a version in pork and a version in beef. One was called a "fajitas mix" and the other one I don't remember what it was called.
I asked the meat manager what the difference in the mixes was, and he said they are basically the same... including Meat, Onions, and green peppers.
But the pork mix was selling for ~$3.xx something and the beef mix was ~$13.xx.
So, does the difference in meats justify the price difference? I realize they could have had much more of the pork to get rid of and it was on special. But I got the impression these were regular prices.
Lots of factors involved in the price difference between beef and pork.
Farm to fork time...beef 18 months, hogs 5-6 months...
Larger feedlot properties required for raising beef...
Feed conversion Ratios...how much feed is consumed vs food produced, pound for pound...hogs 4-9 times more food consumed, beef 6-25 times more food consumed.
Kill time to plate is greater for beef, no aging required on pork.
Americans love of beef.
All this results in greater investment in producing beef, and of course a higher price per pound.
So, does the difference in meats justify the price difference? I realize they could have had much more of the pork to get rid of and it was on special. But I got the impression these were regular prices.
I live in the central Midwest, which is also "cattle country." (Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Iowa.) We've had a rough winter here followed by a very wet spring. Beef prices across the country will be rising this year simply because tens of thousands of cows in the central Plains either froze to death during one of our winter blizzards or they drowned during one of our recent and ongoing floods.
To make matters worse, the weather also destroyed a lot of grain that are used to feed the cattle. It's a double-whammy that will translate into higher beef prices.
As I am writing this, my area is under both a tornado watch and flash flood watch. During the past week my area has received nearly 8 inches of rain. This whole area of the country, which also raises a lot of beef, is water-logged. Expect the pay more a your grocery store. It's simple supply and demand.
I can never remember pork being as expensive as beef. That is probably the reason so many families what struggle financually eat so much pork. I do think today there is even a bigger difference in pricing. Apparently pork is much cheaper to produce
For us, we eat a lot more pork than beef but love them both. Yes, the price difference is the main reason we eat more pork. The other reason it seems I can do more with a piece of pork, especially left over. For us, rare is the only way to eat beef, so when it comes to left overs it is hard to find a way to cook something and keep the beef rare. I am talking top quality cuts of beef, not pot roasts or brisket which is much easier to use as left overs.
Beef is considered to be more pure, which is why its more expensive than pork. Hogs eat trash while steers just eat grass and commercial feed, which is why beef is considered more pure.
Beef is considered to be more pure, which is why its more expensive than pork. Hogs eat trash while steers just eat grass and commercial feed, which is why beef is considered more pure.
Pardon the pun....Baloney ^^^^
Commercially raised hogs get nothing but commercial food....a corn/soybean/etc mix.
Home raised hogs like ours are on the exact same pasture as our beef cattle...a fescue/clover/orchard grass mix, and feed a commercial hog feed (same as commercial hogs) + garden surplus (fresh corn, pumpkins, beans) + surplus apples (which they love).
Commercially raised hogs get nothing but commercial food....a corn/soybean/etc mix.
Home raised hogs like ours are on the exact same pasture as our beef cattle...a fescue/clover/orchard grass mix, and feed a commercial hog feed (same as commercial hogs) + garden surplus (fresh corn, pumpkins, beans) + surplus apples (which they love).
Thanks, TIL. Nice
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