Ham Or Bacon Fan? Get Your Fill This Year; High Prices, Shortages Inevitable In 2013

[hatrack]

Might want to get your fill of ham this year, because "a world shortage of pork and bacon next year is now unavoidable," according to an industry trade group.

Blame the drought conditions that blazed through the corn and soybean crop this year. Less feed led to herds declining across the European Union “at a significant rate,” according to the National Pig Assn. in Britain.

And the trend “is being mirrored around the world,” according to a release (hat tip to the Financial Times). In the second half of next year, the number of slaughtered pigs could fall 10%, doubling the price of European pork, according to the release.

The trade group urged supermarkets to pay pig farmers a fair price for the meat to help cover the drought-related losses.

EDIT

http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-pork-bacon-shortage-20120924,0,5901787.story

[Sanddancer]

1. Becasue of bacon i could never become vegetarian. Eva!

[NickB79]

2. Peak Pork! Oh noez!

Forget oil or grains, this will be what sets off WWIII as the US and China battle each other over the last remaining global pork deposits, mark my words.

[stuntcat]

3. I'm mostly veggie for the environment, but with pigs it's for the animals, they're sweet smarties <3

Pigs are too smart. It gives me shame that my species gives so many millions of them such miserable lives followed by horrible torturous deaths.

Isn't meat production subsidized, and supported by also-subsidized energy and farming?
Just like energy, it's always cost more than consumers realized.