COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Wholesale turkey prices are on the rise this year and now may be a good time to go shopping for your Thanksgiving meal.
Two factors contribute to why we will see higher turkey prices at the store.
“Just like people get the flu, birds get the flu,” said David Anderson, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension economist. “Some strains are a lot worse than others. In this case, it’s really bad. It kills the birds."
Bird flu is directly impacting producers, which affects what we can find at the store.
“If you think about it, all of a sudden, all the birds get sick, all the birds die,” said Dr. Anderson. “You had already planned to produce those birds for the holiday. You were goring them for someone and now they’re all gone.”
Dr. Anderson said when avian influenza hit the United States in the springtime, it took a major toll on production, resulting in a five percent decrease in turkey production compared to last year.
“Between avian influenza and high feed costs, right there you have the recipe for higher prices,” said Dr. Anderson. “We see right now at the store, whether wholesale or retail prices.”
Dr. Anderson says avian influenza and feed costs are also why we are seeing record high egg prices at the store as well due to drought conditions and high demand for meat.
You can find Dr. Anderson's full article here.