Has anyone noticed that Burger King has been promoting the heck out of chickens lately? Or that McDonald's have been bringing back their less-than-exciting Chicken Selects? Turns out there's a reason behind all these clucking promotions.
Chickens are cheap.
Beef prices have risen and it's less costly for fast food chains to invest all their eggs in the chicken basket. NRN reports that beef prices have hit record-high levels while the cost of chicken has been falling. This is attributed to the high costs of corn, and droughts affecting herders and their cattle.
The price trend is expected to continue for at least a year as beef prices aren't likely to fall anytime soon.
Beef-centric chains like Shake Shack, however, do not plan to substitute chicken for beef. Rather, they're fine with raising the cost of their burgers to meet expected price increases.
