MIDLAND, Texas — Steak prices are on the rise across the country.
We hate to break it to you, but it is not just steaks, it is all meat products.
So why exactly is this happening?
According to local rancher and Midland Meat Company owner, John Scharbauer, it all comes down to supply chain issues.
In particular, corn is being impacted which is needed in bushels of feed for animals like cows, pigs, chickens…you get the idea.
“The result of tariffs being lifted off our products like that is basically foreign countries started buying up our product," Scharbauer said. "So it’s not staying home, it’s leaving.”
In January, President Biden lifted the tariffs on corn. Since then more countries like China and Brazil have been taking up supply making for high demand and making feed really expensive for ranchers.
“In January, we were seeing it right around $4.00 and now it’s $7.20 but it got as high as $7.90 and that affects all producers no matter what you are raising."
But corn is not the sole culprit in price hikes.
“You a have a packer issue and labor issue, too," Scharbauer said. "Where the packers have new regulations.”
Scharbauer said he does not expect much to change in 2022.
"With the forecast of the crops and where we’re at...we might be seeing $8.00 dollar corn, I’ve even heard $9.00 corn," Scharbauer said. "I hope that doesn’t happen.”
So what should shoppers do? Scharbauer says we're not just going to see meat products have an increase in prices. It is going to impact all sorts of food.
So make sure to budget accordingly, especially before the holidays.