COVID Continues to Create Uncertainty in Global Pork Demand

The Director of Risk Management with HAMS Marketing Services suggests, despite recent exceptional global demand for pork, COVID continues to create uncertainty and market volatility. In light of recent sharp declines in pork product values, such as bellies which have fallen by 50 dollars per hundredweight over the past 10 days, the pork sector appears to be coming off of its phenomenal run of high hog prices.

Tyler Fulton, the Director of Risk Management with HAMS Marketing Services, says we're still seeing some exceptional live hog prices for the fall time frame but COVID and the so-called fourth wave continue to throw uncertainty on pork demand.

Clip-Tyler Fulton-HAMS Marketing Services:

Really any way you cut it, I think meat demand has performed very well as things kind of transitioned back to a more normal environment where a larger percentage of the supply was going through the food service. I think the global demand looks phenomenal.

The demand for pork and the future demand for all meats, I think looks really positive but, from a more recent standpoint, I think part of the negative influence on things, beyond the normal seasonal lowering of prices, we've seen some influence from China.

They've been a fraction of their former selves in the global purchasing of pork. They haven't had the same role as what we saw last year for example and I think that we never really can rely on them. They continue to be a bit of a wild card and one of the biggest factors that we have to deal with.