Big (Bucks) Bird

Expect to pay a little more for your turkey this year.

Because of this summer’s high temperatures in the Midwest and on the Eastern Seaboard, the turkey flock is smaller than normal. How much that will affect prices is a matter of some debate.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says wholesale prices should bump up only pennies a pound. But at least one local retailer is being told to look for a price increase of 10 to 12 cents per pound.

“Turkey production during the third quarter was about 4% lower than last year,” says Milton Madison, an agricultural economist with the USDA Economic Research Service. “That drove up wholesale prices. Right now we’re looking at about two cents a pound.”

On the other hand, Lou De Rosa, of Puritan Poultry in Los Angeles’ Farmers Market, says his suppliers are telling him to be prepared for a 10- to 12-cent increase on top-grade fresh feedlot turkeys. He says he’ll sell them for about $1.59 a pound this year.

At the same time, the high-end, free-range WillieBirds De Rosa sells--which come from Sonoma County and were unaffected by the heat--should be at or near last year’s prices of about $1.99 a pound.

How all this will play out at the supermarket remains to be seen. California Farm Bureau Poultry Director Bruce Blodgett says he expects most of the big chains to absorb the increased wholesale prices. “I expect the lowest prices for frozen grade A turkey to be similar to last year,” he says, “in the 29- to 39-cents a pound range.”