With Beef Prices Skyrocketing, Americans Are Saving Money By Purchasing This Meat Instead

Anyone who's shopped for groceries recently has undoubtedly experienced a bit of sticker shock, especially in the meat department. Beef prices, in particular, have soared — they've risen an average of 15% per month. Industry leaders and politicians are playing the blame game. Are the price increases due to a drop in supply, as the former claims, or does price fixing have something to do with it, as per a government investigation? Either way, it's consumers who are most affected, and as a result, many of us are switching to a different meat product: the ever-versatile chicken.

Chicken sales have risen 4% over the past year — Tyson reported an increase from from $4.251 billion to $4.411 billion — with sales likely being driven by the fact that this product remains relatively affordable. (Even when egg prices were through the roof and stores started limiting sales, chicken meat prices stayed stable.) Chicken, and in particular, white meat chicken, is also often seen as a healthier alternative to beef, so that's another advantage that comes with making the switch.

Chicken may not be the cheapest source of protein, since that honor probably goes to dried beans. (You can buy these for not much more than $1 per pound, but when cooked up, they expand to about three times their size.) Still, it generally tends to be the cheapest meat per pound, especially if you buy bone-in leg quarters. These are currently priced at $1.49 per pound at Milwaukee-area Pick 'n Save stores, although boneless, skinless breasts can cost up to $9 per pound if you want the organic kind. In contrast, even a cheap chuck steak is about $11 per pound, while ribeye ... you don't even want to know. (Spoiler: It's $22 per pound at that same Milwaukee Pick 'n Save.) With that in mind, no wonder steak sales are dropping and chicken dinner is the winner.

Even though pork sales haven't risen to the same level as chicken, the other white meat also makes an affordable beef alternative, and pork tenderloin can be a tasty yet budget-friendly filet mignon substitute. Whole turkeys can be another bargain, especially when they go on sale around Thanksgiving. One Reddit wit, however, proposed a different candidate for king of the cheap meats: "Deer Legs. Because they are under a buck." (Ba dum tss!)