INDIANAPOLIS — Beef producers have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. “Beef market conditions aren’t the best,” said Joe Moore, executive vice president for the Indiana Beef Cattle Association and the Indiana Beef Council.
Moore said an Oklahoma State University study found there was a loss of $19.6 billion on live cattle from March to the end of April.
“Four major packers control the beef market in the United States, and they aren’t operating at 100%,” Moore said, adding that even though some of those packing plants are beginning to reopen, production has slowed as they have had to reduce the capacity of animals they can handle and are implementing changes and adding personal protective equipment to protect their employees and consumers.
Moore said a packing plant that could normally handle around 6,000 head of beef a day, may be processing about 2,500 head a day now.
Moore said because processing plants aren’t running at full capacity, they can’t keep up with demand for it.
“Packers can’t process beef fast enough,” Moore said.
Moore said the IBCA is doing its best to keep Hoosier beef producers informed about what is going on in the industry, funding and bailouts that might be available, and answering any questions that producers might have.
“I think people need to know that there is not a beef or food shortage — it’s a logistics issues,” Moore said.