Tightening meat supplies reflect robust consumer demand

Total red meat supplies in freezers in May was 2% lower than the previous month and down 4% from the year prior to 879 million pounds. According to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service’s latest “Cold Storage” report, total beef stocks came in at 408 million pounds, a 3% decrease from the previous month and 1% reduction from 2024. At 451 million pounds, frozen pork supplies were down just 1% from April, but 7% from last year.

Boneless beef was down 2% from a year ago to 365 million pounds, while beef cuts were up 4% to 43 million pounds in May.

With an inventory of 53 million pounds, pork bellies were down 7% from April and 26% from last year. As for other pork cuts, picnics came in at 7 million pounds (up 27% from 2024), ham 108 million pounds (down 1% from 2024), loins 37 million pounds (up 7% from 2024), ribs 80,000 pounds (up 5% from 2024), butts 16,000 pounds (down 20% from 2024), trimmings 45,000 pounds (up 4% from 2024) and variety meats 21,000 pounds (down 26% from 2024).

As Tyler Cozzens, director and agricultural economist at the Livestock Marketing Information Center, pointed out during a recent interview with K-State Agriculture Today, the decreases in cold storage pork stocks in the bellies, hams, butts and variety meat were more than offset by increases in stocks for loins, picnics, spareribs and trimmings.