• The Power of Group Purchasing for Cost Reduction
• The Shifting Restaurant Supply Chain
• Women Restaurant Leaders on Career Advice and Overcoming Challenges
• 6 Restaurants Win America’s Classics Awards from James Beard Foundation
• January’s Minimum Wage Hikes Add New Cost Challenges for Small-Restaurant Owners

Poultry

Prices are rising across the board, following the same pattern that has been evident over the past month. All sizes of breasts had significant price hikes. Wings of all sizes continue to rise in popularity due to high demand. There is a persistent rise in tenders. The birds as a whole were marginally smaller. Dark is still up.

Beef

Chucks are still steady. Rounds are getting stronger, and buyers appear to be entering the market more quickly. Sel/No Roll grade and light ribs in particular have produced a little strength in the ribs and tenders. Strips are still scarce and getting stronger. For the near future, grinds are combined from packer to packer.

Pork

Butts are still in high demand, thus they are continuing to rise. Strengthening of the ribs is still evident. Within the next week, this is anticipated to fall off. Loins are moving in line with the usual seasonal trend, notwithstanding the slowdown in retail demand. Although the market is still erratic, bellies are heading downward for the upcoming week. As predicted, ham sales are rising due to robust exports and rising consumer demand.

The Sea

Seafood

The season of Lent is now upon us. Due to the difficult season, there is a limited supply of lobster tails. The Dungeness crab season is well underway, and new stock is already available from vendors. This year, crawfish prices will be high and supplies will be limited.

Produce

Adverse weather conditions persisting in different growing regions have resulted in a significant decline in overall crop yields and an increase in quality issues and bloom loss. Moreover, we are approaching the transition from Yuma, AZ to Salinas Valley, CA in a few weeks, a period that has historically witnessed elevated market prices and heightened quality concerns. California is currently experiencing another round of storms, with additional rainfall expected in the central growing regions. While these rains won’t immediately impact vegetable production, the effects will be seen as the transition from Yuma to Salinas occurs. Growers have been dealing with quality defects that can affect yields and weights but are working hard to address these issues in the fields.

Kitchen Sink

Dairy

The markets for shell eggs are declining throughout the Northwest and California. Block size is getting smaller. Barrel is becoming bigger. Butter is still up.

Grain

Last week, the market for soybean oil fell by about 3.5% as speculative speculators kept selling. With some increased exports and China pulling back after the Lunar New Year celebrations, palm oil saw little change. Canola saw significant speculative selling but finished largely unchanged despite its volatility.