Filet mignon: it's what's for dinner? COVID-19 impacts on the relative wholesale prices of beef cuts

ABSTRACT

This article shows that COVID-19 had a unique impact on the prices of various individual beef cuts in the USA. This impact was also through a different mechanism than in other market shocks. The COVID-19 pandemic included a supply shock component due to reduced slaughter and a demand shock stemming from restaurant closures and aversion toward in-person dining even when available. High-end cuts, like tenderloins, were disproportionately impacted as a result of restaurant closures.