Tyson Foods, the largest US meatpacking company, is closing plants in Iowa and Utah and selling a facility in Washington state, cutting hundreds of jobs as cattle supplies hit a 75-year low. The closures come amid a historic cattle shortage caused by prolonged drought, rising costs and consolidation among ranchers, but economists say the move is unlikely to significantly affect what shoppers pay for beef, since the US already has more processing capacity than cattle to fill it.

Tyson reported beef volumes down 15.9% and a beef operating loss of $138m in its latest quarterly results, but experts say the cattle destined for its closed plants will simply be processed elsewhere, meaning national beef output should stay largely unchanged. The real driver of higher prices is demand: beef quality has improved and a broader "protein craze" has pushed consumption up even as prices rose 9% over the past year, while pork and chicken prices fell. Analysts note this is partly explained by a "K-shaped economy", where wealthier households continue paying premium prices for beef even as many Americans face rising petrol and housing costs.