December 20, 2006

Chicken companies hoping to pass on escalating feed costs to consumers

Chicken companies are hoping to pass at least some of the high feed costs onto shoppers, despite resistance from supermarkets and fast-food chains, said Richard Lobb, spokesman for the National Chicken Council.

Soaring demand for ethanol has raised corn prices, the primary feed for chickens. The high feed costs are additional burdens to farmers who have had to deal with disruptions in the global market from bird flu and higher fuel and feed costs this year.

The average American is expected to buy 87.5 pounds of chicken this year, compared with 65.4 pounds of beef and 49.4 pounds of pork. Next year, people are expected to buy slightly more beef and pork and slightly less chicken, according to USDA estimates.