Tampa cattle company weighs in on high beef prices

PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — For 15 years, Providence Cattle Company has been raising cows for harvest.

In those years, owner Joe Planz said they’ve seen the business change drastically, not just in how they raise their cows but when it comes to prices.

“What we do is hard work, but it’s very rewarding,” he said.

After the pandemic, the processing plant Planz used raised its price 100%, blaming the increase on higher wages.

Then he got a similar message from the warehouse where their beef is stored.

That price increase was 115%.

“Two of our major costs just doubled,” Planz said. “Now I can’t go to my customer and say, ‘Hey, that pound of ground beef you had last week is now double the amount.’ We wouldn’t have any business.”

What Planz has seen locally parallels national data.

In June 2015, ground beef cost $4.22 per pound. Ten years later, the price is up to $6.12, a 45% increase. The price increase for uncooked beef steaks is similar.

Planz said other factors have contributed to the price increase, including around 10 million fewer cows, bulls and calves in the country plus the price of diesel, feed and hay all going up.

“The price of beef has never been this high,” he said. “I can get twice as much for a calf this year than I did, let’s say, ten, 15 years ago. I can get twice as much, but all my costs are twice as much.”