Ethanol drives up the price of beef
JUNCTION CITY - The biofuels industry is booming. And the drive for alternative fuels is having an impact in one area you might not expect--the price of our beef.
"There's a new source of demand in the corn industry and it's called ethanol," Bruce Anderson with Eugene Livestock Auction said. "A big percentage of the corn that we used to feed the livestock--whether it be pigs or cattle or chickens is now being made into fuel," he explained.
And that's forcing the price of beef to skyrocket. "At some point, you can't afford $20 for a steak," Bruce's wife Katherine said.
"The price of corn has made a huge impact. It's gone from $117 per ton to $157 per ton. That's in the last 3 months," Bright Oak Meats manager Denise Pohrman.
She adds, everything in the beef industry has gone up. From corn to the paper supplies for packaging, she's not expecting relief anytime soon.
"You're going to see it get higher because what they're eating right now is higher," Pohrman said.
So what will it take for beef prices to buck the upward trend?
"Maybe farmers across the country will get on the bandwagon and plant more corn than we need and it'll go down," Anderson said.
Until then, we may have to get ready to fork over even more money for a good cut of steak.
"There's a new source of demand in the corn industry and it's called ethanol," Bruce Anderson with Eugene Livestock Auction said. "A big percentage of the corn that we used to feed the livestock--whether it be pigs or cattle or chickens is now being made into fuel," he explained.
And that's forcing the price of beef to skyrocket. "At some point, you can't afford $20 for a steak," Bruce's wife Katherine said.
"The price of corn has made a huge impact. It's gone from $117 per ton to $157 per ton. That's in the last 3 months," Bright Oak Meats manager Denise Pohrman.
She adds, everything in the beef industry has gone up. From corn to the paper supplies for packaging, she's not expecting relief anytime soon.
"You're going to see it get higher because what they're eating right now is higher," Pohrman said.
So what will it take for beef prices to buck the upward trend?
"Maybe farmers across the country will get on the bandwagon and plant more corn than we need and it'll go down," Anderson said.
Until then, we may have to get ready to fork over even more money for a good cut of steak.
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