Global Bacon Shortage: Baconpocalypse Is ‘Unavoidable’ Next Year With Higher Pork Prices

Forget adding on bacon to your cheeseburgers or the “B” in that BLT because the global bacon shortage is “unavoidable” according to the National Pig Association.

The imminent baconpocalypse, according to the British trade group, is because of shrinking herds causing a shortage of bacon and pork globally. The Association reported on Thursday that major European producers of pigs fell between 2011 and 2012 and has been “mirrored around the world.” The group linked increased feed costs stemming from poor corn and soybean harvests as the cause.

“A world shortage of pork and bacon next year is now unavoidable,” the NPA said in a statement. “New data shows the European Union pig herd is declining at a significant rate, and this is a trend that is being mirrored around the world. Pig farmers have been plunged into loss by high pig-feed costs, caused by the global failure of maize and soya harvests. All main European pig-producing countries report shrinking sow herds.”

The shortage also stems from supermarkets in the United Kingdom, which must raise the prices they pay to pig farmers or else suffer a shortage or high prices next year. The group established a campaign called “Save Our Bacon” which urges shoppers to purchase pork and bacon with a red tractor logo to persuade supermarkets to act.

According to the group, prices for European porn and bacon will double as well as a decrease in slaughtering by as much as 10 percent.

But many may wonder how this affects the U.S., which has also experienced a similar drought in the Midwest. Bloomberg News reported the pork supply will have the lowest per capita rate since 1975, causing consumers to pay as much as 3.5 more percent in 2013.

According to the Department of Agriculture (USDA), next year will see an increase in the prices of corn and soybean meal as well as a cut in hog production to cut losses. All in all, the USDA said pork production will fall by 1.3 percent from this year’s estimated total, based on an August monthly outlook report, and Americans will reduce consumption per capita by 1.3 percent in 2013.