Pilgrim’s Pride To Pay $110.5 Million Fine For Chicken Price Fixing In Justice Department Plea Deal
Chicken processing giant Pilgrim’s Pride agreed to pay a $110.5 million penalty for curtailing competition in the poultry market. The agreement is among the first results in a long-running government investigation, as nearly 40 lawsuits have been filed by grocers, restaurants and others. Colorado-based Pilgrim's Pride is a division of meatpacker JBS USA and processes about one out of every five chickens in the US market.
Meat Prices Drop As Supplies Rebound
Image Source: Angus Mordant / Bloomberg News
Ground beef and pork loin prices have returned to pre-pandemic levels. Prime rib and chicken wings are even cheaper than before the pandemic began. In September, prime rib sold for $7.15 a pound, down more than 11% since the beginning of the year. New York strip prices are about 8% lower, and beef brisket prices have fallen nearly 20%. U.S. Department of Agriculture figures show that meat processing has not only resumed but is now largely exceeding year-over-year levels. Despite production increases, Tyson Foods estimates that about 1 million cattle and 3 million hogs remain backed up on U.S. feedlots and farms due to prior slaughterhouse shutdowns.
US To Import British Beef For First Time In 24 Years
Image Source: Tim Scrivener
This month, the US will receive its first shipment of beef from the UK in the past 24 years. The USDA has effectively lifted its 24-year ban on British beef that went in effect amid the mad cow disease scare in the mid 1990s. The first shipments will come from Northern Ireland and Wales, and lifting the ban opens the door to an estimated £66 million of export opportunities for UK farmers over the next five years.
Canadian Beef Thieves Steal $230,000 Worth Of Roasts And Steaks
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Two rustlers in Alberta presented themselves as truck drivers for a fake company called "Transport Pascal Charland" and made off with nearly a quarter of a million dollars worth of beef from a JBS meatpacking plant. Alberta police are searching for the bandits and say that the same fake documentation was also used to steal seven hot tubs in a separate heist.
Walmart Tests Drone Delivery Of Groceries
Walmart Inc has begun a pilot project for delivering groceries and household products via automated drones with delivery firm Flytrex. The company began testing the new grocery delivery program last week in Fayetteville, North Carolina using cloud-controlled drones to collect and drop off items. Walmart’s U.S. online sales have doubled in the second quarter of this year. To help meet increasing demand for grocery delivery and to compete directly with Amazon, the company has beefed up both its pick-up and delivery services. Walmart has also partnered with Ford Motor Co and the self-driving vehicle startups Gatik and Nuro to explore the viability of grocery delivery by autonomous vehicle.
Food Prices Continue To Rise Worldwide
Global food prices increased for the third consecutive month in August, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In July, the food price index averaged 94.3 points, while in August the average climbed to 96.1 points. FAO’s cereal price index grew 1.9% in August from the month before and 7% above its value a year earlier, with sorghum, barley and rice prices increasing the most. The vegetable oil price index rose 5.9%, while sugar prices increased 6.7% from July. The FAO cited China’s powerful import demand as a contributing factor in rising prices. Sugar production is also predicted to slow down due to poor weather conditions in the European Union and Thailand.
