It Might Be Harder To Find Thanksgiving Turkeys In 2021
Oh great...another shortage. Yep. Turkeys might be harder to come by this year for Thanksgiving.
This pandemic just keeps rearing its ugly head up all of the time. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been many shortages in the supply and demand chain. It started with toilet paper, then there was meat, ketchup, and soft drink shortages. Restaurants such as Taco Bell and Chick-Fil-A have also faced shortages over the past year due to the pandemic as well. The shortages don't stop there because now we might have to get a little creative when it comes to our Thanksgiving meals in 2021.
When you think about a Thanksgiving meal, the first thing that comes to mind is naturally a turkey, right? Practically everyone has one on their dinner table at Thanksgiving. However, that might not be the case this year. According to a recent article by The New York Post, many meat producers are expecting a turkey shortage for Thanksgiving. This is leaving retailers trying to find ways to stock up on turkeys.
The article says that the shortage is expected to impact fresh turkeys under 16 pounds, said the outlet. These are usually the most popular choice for holiday meals. Extra-large turkeys will be easier to find, but it's likely that they are more than what most families need and they require more time to cook.
Turkey farmers have been struggling with waning production for years due to slowing demand. These issues were made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic, which the Post said reduced labor and increased costs. This is leaving many stores seeing their turkey orders decreased by 50% in some cases.
So in short, we may not be able to find the desired size of turkey for the Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. Therefore, you might have to get a little creative by either buying a bigger turkey or coming up with a substitute. Last year at Thanksgiving, it was just my parents and me, so we decided to do things a little differently. We had a non-traditional taco bar for our Thanksgiving meal...and it was pretty darn good! Just a thought to consider if you find yourself not able to find a turkey this year.
(H/T- The New York Post)
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