Trend watch: Higher beef prices, corn uncertainty in store for 2013
Flat production and rising feed prices have led many to predict high future beef and corn prices.
According to Rabobank, global beef prices will rise to unprecedented levels in 2013 as production remains basically flat and the world economy remains sluggish.
The natural recovery of herds in Brazil, Australia and Argentina led to a 2 percent drop in the Rabobank Global Cattle Price Index in Nov. 2012, but rising grain prices and a reduction in herds in the US and Europe will continue to inflate prices in 2013. The effects of the reduction in Northern Hemisphere cattle won’t be felt equally throughout the global market, though, according to Rabobank analyst Guilherme Melo.