Agribusiness Weekly Update: Retail beef and chicken prices move higher

Chicken
The chicken processing margin averaged zero cents a pound, 13-cents better than a year ago. Broiler egg sets were down 5.5% to 195.2 million eggs. Heads slaughtered declined 4.8% year over year, while pounds produced fell 6.7%. March typically marks the start of a seasonal rise in breast meat pricing. Food service demand remains the key driver behind a recovery in breast meat pricing. Breast meat traded at $1.22 per pound, up 5 cents from a year ago.

Table Eggs
The egg margin averaged 25 cents per dozen, 3 cents lower than a year ago. Southeast
egg prices were 95 cents a dozen, down 4 cents from a year ago.

Grains
Cash corn prices finished the week up 15 cents to $6.55 per bushel and 6.2% cheaper than a year ago. Soybean prices jumped 51 cents to $13.13 per bushel. Prices fell 5% from last year.

Beef
U.S. beef packers lost $13.97 per head processed, versus $22.62 lost a year ago. Through still negative, processing margins were the highest since mid-September. Cattle slaughter fell 3.7% compared to last year, while beef production was down 1.4%. Live cattle prices were up 15% year-over-year. Friday, cash cattle traded at a record high $130 per/ cwt. Choice beef prices hit retail high $5.10 per pound.

Hogs & Pork
Pork processors lost $2.12 per head last week, compared to $14.31 profited last year.
Weekly hog slaughter numbers rose 0.5%, while pork production increased 0.5% compared to 2011.

Dairy
Dairy prices are under pressure since the USDA Dairy Products report Friday. The March 12 Class III contract declined 1.1% to close the week at $15.19 per/cwt. 
             
Ethanol & Energy
The ethanol crush margin averaged 41 cents per gallon, down 24 cents from last year and 4 cents above last week. Ethanol averaged $2.26 per gallon, trading at a $1.01 discount to gasoline.