Tyson Foods Points To Further Pressure On Beef Volumes From “tight” Supply

Credit: Nikolaj Sribyanik/Shutterstock

Tyson Foods has suggested beef volumes will proceed to suffer successful nan caller fiscal twelvemonth arsenic “tight” cattle proviso is apt to put upward unit connected prices.

While nan US-headquartered nutrient elephantine reported nan dollar worth of beef income edged up successful nan 4th fourth and complete nan afloat 12 months of nan 2025 financial year, volumes fell 8.4% and 1.9%, respectively.

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to scope engaged professionals crossed 36 starring media platforms.

Find retired much

Consequently, prices went up 17% and 9% successful nan reporting periods.

“The beef conception remains our only soft spot,” president and CEO Donnie King said successful his results chat pinch analysts arsenic chickenhearted income are expected to return up nan slack successful fiscal 2026 for Tyson Foods’ 2 biggest gross earners.

Arkansas-based Tyson Foods has already pointed to an adjusted operating loss for beef successful nan caller twelvemonth of $400-600m.

“Cattle supplies are astatine grounds lows owed to drought, imaginable herd rebuilding, and nan effect of caller world screwworm successful Mexico. These factors created marketplace headwinds during nan quarter,” King explained yesterday (10 November).

In nan caller year, King and recently installed COO Devin Cole said nan challenges revolve astir nan imaginable that tight proviso will beryllium hampered by heifer retention, aliases holding female carves backmost to subordinate nan beverage aliases breeding herd alternatively than releasing them for slaughter.

“Looking forward, we expect cattle supplies to stay tight arsenic we move into 2026. During this period, chickenhearted is apt to use astir from changing user preferences, some astatine unit and successful foodservice,” King said.

“While we are not satisfied pinch our existent beef results, our diversified business exemplary continues to build resilience and thrust profitability crossed nan company.”

King added during nan Q&A convention that “more heifer retention implies little beef successful nan adjacent term”, which “means proviso of market-ready cattle will autumn earlier it increases successful early years”.

In nan wider context, King said “consumers stay cautious and selective pinch their spending”, though he noted that contempt rising income from private-label peers Tyson Foods is not impacted.

“Their maturation comes astatine nan disbursal of different brands, not Tyson, arsenic we proceed to outpace nan class successful some measurement and performance,” he said.

With beef prices apt to support rising, chickenhearted will benefit, according to CFO Kurt Calaway.

Chicken volumes roseate 3.7% successful nan last 4th of fiscal 2025 and 2.6% for nan twelvemonth based connected respective pricing of 0.1% and minus 0.1%.

“We judge chickenhearted will beryllium nan superior beneficiary of higher beef costs successful nan upcoming year. We besides expect our operational execution to proceed to execute astatine a precocious level,” Calaway said.