The bird-flu epidemic cut into turkey supplies a year ago, but there are no supply issues this year, said Feedstuffs. Turkey production in the current quarter is forecast up by 100 million pounds compared to the same three months in 2015, according to the Livestock Marketing Information Center (LMIC).
Americans consume 1.5-1.6 billion pounds of turkey during the October-December holiday season. There will be strong competition for sales this year because of large supplies of ham, the result of an expansion in hog production that began in 2015.
Hurricane Matthew cut into turkey production during October by flooding poultry barns in North Carolina, said LMIC. Losses are estimated at nearly 2 million birds, or 3 percent of U.S. production for the final three months of the year.