COVID-19: No beef shortage, but processing capacity strained

California is not likely to suffer a beef shortage as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic but the industry’s processing plants and distribution chain are already heavily strained, a group of cattle ranchers and grocers said this week.

California has nearly 14,000 ranches and is the country’s fifth-largest beef producer. However, with restaurants, stadiums and other food-serving venues shuttered or operating on a limited scale for the foreseeable future due to the pandemic, ranchers say there could be a bottleneck to process and distribute beef.