business
Rising Beef Prices Are Slaughtering Steakhouses
Key takeaways
- The U.S. cattle herd has fallen to a 75-year low, according to the Texas Farm Bureau, driven by drought, labor shortages, dwindling ranch land and high operational costs.
- Wholesale brisket in Texas is up roughly 28% year-over-year, with Houston-based Roegels Barbecue Co. now paying $5.56 per pound and raising its menu brisket price 6% to $35 per pound, according to The Washington Post.
- Burnt Bean Co. in Seguin, Texas, also raised brisket prices to $38 per pound and may soon restrict sales of it to one day a week, per the Post.
Topline. A historic cattle shortage has pushed wholesale beef to record levels, slaughtering steakhouses from Texas barbecue institutions to high-end Midwest chains—though lower-cost players like Texas Roadhouse and Outback Steakhouse are growing through the squeeze.
Steaks with thyme.getty Key Facts Steak prices spiked 17% to $13.02 per pound in one year, and ground beef hit a record $6.90 per pound, up 19% from the year prior, according to April data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
The U.S. cattle herd has fallen to a 75-year low, according to the Texas Farm Bureau, driven by drought, labor shortages, dwindling ranch land and high operational costs.
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