Ben Reyes has a difficult task to accomplish each year: as meat boss at Guam Pay-Less supermarkets, Reyes will have to order the amount of seasonal items, such as turkeys, long before Thanksgiving.
In a general year, this calculation is so that the points of sale have enough products to spend the holidays without having many uns sold birds.
But by 2020, COVID-19 is shifting the circle from family plans to much smaller gatherings and driving demand for small birds, assuming they are even available.
In March, when pandemic closures began, figuring out the call in the fall required informed guesswork, Reyes said. Would the hotels be open and serve turkey dinners?What about restaurants?
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Reyes said he had canceled orders for giant turkeys weighing up to 22 pounds, with hotels.
“If the smaller lengths will be more ideal,” he said, “so I went looking for a package from 10 to 12, from 12 to 14. The largest length I’ll have will be 20 pounds. Most will be 14 to 16 years old. “
But it’s not just about ordering. There’s a fierce festival for those turkeys. Reyes said Pay-Less competes with the continent’s chains for smaller birds.
“I just called a guy this morning and he told me they were going crazy looking for where to find smaller birds. “
“The amount (of turkey) I brought this year is significantly less than the previous one, because no, I don’t have that crystal ball,” Reyes said. “No one knows how much we’re going to do with the birds and we do it. I don’t need to stay with them after the holidays. I projected about 30, 000 pounds less than I have in a year.
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If Guam consumers are looking for less expensive turkey prices, Reyes said, the continent’s suppliers are not betting on this game.
“People think so, ” said Reyes, “but they have the gun in their head, because if they’re going to have a turkey, they’re going to pay the price. To take or leave. “
Reyes hopes that his estimates will be “right” and that the turkey materials that will last the holidays, but there is some other favorite of the festive table the holiday season in very scarcity.
“There is no ham to eat,” Reyes said, explaining that China’s love of red meat is scarcity.
“Because China has a shortage of pork, it has collected a lot of garbage and there are other people struggling to see who can get the most productive treatment in hams,” he said. coming out of Brazil. “
Add pressure on the costs of Canadian and American red meat facing a sharp increase.
“We’ll hold on as long as possible, but wow, it’s getting tough. The red meat chops are going to start going up,” Reyes said.
And if you like Smithfield’s amateur radios, keep in mind that the Virginia company is now a “100% subsidiary of WH Group of China,” according to its corporate website.
“Then (China) has the U. S. market if you need to follow it,” Reyes said. “If you ask me, “Well, do you have Smithfield hams?” I can’t locate anything from Smithfield. Everything goes to China. “