Global bacon shortage 'unavoidable'
Source is in a near-panic.
Experts say the world could be on the verge of a significant bacon shortage because of rising feed costs and declining pig populations.
Britain's National Pig Association said Tuesday that an international shortage of bacon and other pork products is now "unavoidable," and expects higher prices for consumers soon.
Recent data shows Europe's pig population declining at an alarming rate "and this is a trend that is being mirrored around the world," the NPA said in a release. Every major pork-producing European nation has fewer pigs today than they did last year, even as demand for pork products has remained high.
A crippling drought in the U.S. farm belt caused the price of corn and soy, two staples of agricultural feed, to skyrocket. Retailers have been thus far unwilling to pass those costs on to consumers, and instead have been paying pig farmers less for each pig.
The problem is not limited to Europe.
The Canadian Pork Council confirms that the size of North America's pig herd is shrinking, which will drive up prices as farmers start to limit supply.
"It's because of the rise in the price of corn," the agency's public relations manager, Gary Stordy, told CBC News. "Producers are losing money right now and like any other business, when you're not making money, you shut down."
'Market price' unsustainable
U.S. laws that mandate a certain percentage of the corn crop go into ethanol fuel for the transportation industry had lit a fire under corn prices even before the drought. The size of the continent's corn crop has been rising for a decade, before falling precipitously this year.
When that happens, other corn buyers, including pig farmers, get hit.
"You can buy futures for some commodities, but not feed," Stordy said. "Farmers can't find a way to hedge their bets, so they have to pay the market price," which has suddenly become unsustainable, he said.
The cost increases have made it no longer cost-efficient for farmers to raise pigs, NPA says. It recently warned that a fall of two per cent in the number of hogs slaughtered next year would push consumer prices up by 10 per cent
"NPA believes slaughtering could fall by as much as 10 per cent in the second half of next year, which indicates a doubling of the price of … pork and pork products," the agency said.
Source is in a near-panic.
Except oh shit there's a soy shortage as well. Damn.
Ham (boneless ham, that is) uses a lot more (as in more variety) of the pig than bacon does; bacon (not that ground up SizzleLean stuff) can only be made with a few specific parts (the back or the belly, I think-maybe only the back), whereas for a ham, especially a boneless ham, they use all sorts of parts, bone them, grind them up, and then press them into forms, spice them and run them through a steam oven to cook and cure.
My husband used to work for a company that made the steam ovens and the form pans. The ovens are the size of commercial refrigerators, and the forms reminded me of those old, five or ten loaf bread pans.
yo i hate to be all serious and debbie downer, but WESTERN FOOD PRODUCTION RUNS ON CORN. this is not funny. also i'm pretty sure there's been riots and deaths in the last decade in the developing world because of the price of food--moreso than usual and not directly related to hyperinflation that has been happening for a while in specific countries.
Edited at 2012-09-26 12:01 pm (UTC)
"It's because of the rise in the price of corn," the agency's public relations manager, Gary Stordy, told CBC News. "Producers are losing money right now and like any other business, when you're not making money, you shut down."
In a huge industry like corn, with the huge amount of subsidization, you don't *lose money*. That bit should have been written like this:
"Producers are afraid their profits will become less exorbitant, so like any other subsidized common resource, when you're faced with less profits, you cut back on production to limit supply and artificially inflate prices, then try to sell it as a reaction to profit loss."
Edited at 2012-09-26 12:35 pm (UTC)
So that's two groups who just don't care. Plus a lot of vegetarians around the world.
Which leaves the question of whether everyone else is just bug-fuck nuts over bacon. And really, we have enough problems. We want to fight about bacon?
(Besides the rare medical reasons as posted above, but that is a preeetty special case)
I never got the argument that vegetarians were wimps for not eating meat. A lot of meat-eaters don't hunt or are other squeamish about actually killing animals. I honestly think being a vegetarian is a much more courageous choice (pretentiousness notwithstanding.)
"Bring me all the eggs and bacon you have. I'm worried that you heard me say bring me a lot of eggs and bacon. Bring me ALL the eggs and bacon you have."
Edited at 2012-09-26 01:36 pm (UTC)
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE BACON-LOVING PUPS?
That said, my dog goes crazy for these.