Processed Meat 3-4X Price Of Fresh Meat

[BuffaloRescue]

Just wondering, another of Thailand's mysteries.

Ham, bacon, luncheon meat, stuff like this - all 3-4X the price of prime cut pork.

Just wondering.. why exactly.

In the free market why arent more people smoking bacon, making processed meat products etc and prices are lower?? Seems very strange. In most countries these kinds of products (ok maybe not bacon) are much cheaper than say shoulder pork etc

[amykat]

I'll bite on this thread ...always a big mystery to me as well!! My daughter loves hot dogs and other normally, CHEAP meat products, and one day I actually compared the prices per kilo and was shocked at how expensive hot dogs and similar products actually cost here! As compared to other meats at Rimping for example, I never buy any meats from the local markets ...although I do buy fruits and veg there sometimes. But let me say that I don't find meats at the local markets cheaper, just that they are rotten after about 12 hours, or right away! So why bother?

I've always found it interesting that chicken breasts, both skinless and boneless, seems to be the cheapest meat one can buy in Thailand. Cheaper, I think than anything, cheaper than bugs, frogs, rat, all types of pork, cheaper then chicken "elbows" ...not sure what those are, little things mostly bone, tendon, skin, etc.

I've been wondering for years, if many "poor people" eat lesser qualities of meat, like what I call chicken "elbows" and there are maybe 100 poor people for every "richer person" who might eat better cuts of meat, so where or who is eating all the chicken breasts? And if they aren't eating them due to habit, but see in the shops that this meat is pretty cheap, why don't they try it?

My main complaint about Thai food, is the crap meat they put into things. If and when I buy it, I usually buy extra meat, extra fish balls, whatever, also extra veg, to make it healthier, and more protein, etc.

Anyway, my question to everyone, is WHO or WHERE do all the chicken breasts go, for all the people who are eating just the crap parts of the chicken? Think about China, and all those people eating only crap parts of the chicken, like the feet...so who eats the good parts? If most people are poor and learn to love these lesser parts of animals, who is eating the good parts, if nobody thinks those parts are GOOD?

[SamsonSW]

Not many companies competing making the products you're talking about.

The ones Thais eat - like what we call "fish balls" are much more competitive.

For excellent deals, find a company-owned 'Bangkok Pork Company' store, I particularly like their "paris ham" sliced thin to order, last I checked 280 baht per kilo, a lot cheaper than supermarkets, probably less than half the 7-11 price.

Foodland has a nice selection of salami / pepperoni reasonably price, including spicy Hungarian style. Also cheap German style foods, liverwurst at 60 baht per tube.

[SamsonSW]

I'll bite on this thread ...always a big mystery to me as well!! My daughter loves hot dogs and other normally, CHEAP meat products, and one day I actually compared the prices per kilo and was shocked at how expensive hot dogs and similar products actually cost here! As compared to other meats at Rimping for example, I never buy any meats from the local markets ...although I do buy fruits and veg there sometimes. But let me say that I don't find meats at the local markets cheaper, just that they are rotten after about 12 hours, or right away! So why bother?

I've always found it interesting that chicken breasts, both skinless and boneless, seems to be the cheapest meat one can buy in Thailand. Cheaper, I think than anything, cheaper than bugs, frogs, rat, all types of pork, cheaper then chicken "elbows" ...not sure what those are, little things mostly bone, tendon, skin, etc.

I've been wondering for years, if many "poor people" eat lesser qualities of meat, like what I call chicken "elbows" and there are maybe 100 poor people for every "richer person" who might eat better cuts of meat, so where or who is eating all the chicken breasts? And if they aren't eating them due to habit, but see in the shops that this meat is pretty cheap, why don't they try it?

My main complaint about Thai food, is the crap meat they put into things. If and when I buy it, I usually buy extra meat, extra fish balls, whatever, also extra veg, to make it healthier, and more protein, etc.

Anyway, my question to everyone, is WHO or WHERE do all the chicken breasts go, for all the people who are eating just the crap parts of the chicken? Think about China, and all those people eating only crap parts of the chicken, like the feet...so who eats the good parts? If most people are poor and learn to love these lesser parts of animals, who is eating the good parts, if nobody thinks those parts are GOOD?

CP dominates the market, and I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of their output - definitely the top quality stuff - is exported. Set up with the most modern automated systems, amazing huge operations, at least as efficient as back home probably more. Many parts of the supply chain are actually in effect subsidized by tax / tariff policies if not directly, the CP brothers have many friends in high places.

Some wholesale markets the price per kilo of the whole chicken isn't that much less than breasts and legs, again has to do with volume - economies of scale.

The poorest country Thais eat the cheapest bits, which are cheaper than the whole chicken. But believe me every scrap does get put to use, if nothing else feeding pigs - the other huge protein source here.

[amykat]

Okay so pork, the most common meat I believe in Asia, is 280 baht per kilo, according to you ...yet, chicken breast, skinless and boneless, so no waste at all, is 139 baht per kilo, at RIMPING.

That is quite a difference, a huge difference!

[RabC]

I'll bite on this thread ...always a big mystery to me as well!! My daughter loves hot dogs and other normally, CHEAP meat products, and one day I actually compared the prices per kilo and was shocked at how expensive hot dogs and similar products actually cost here! As compared to other meats at Rimping for example, I never buy any meats from the local markets ...although I do buy fruits and veg there sometimes. But let me say that I don't find meats at the local markets cheaper, just that they are rotten after about 12 hours, or right away! So why bother?

I've always found it interesting that chicken breasts, both skinless and boneless, seems to be the cheapest meat one can buy in Thailand. Cheaper, I think than anything, cheaper than bugs, frogs, rat, all types of pork, cheaper then chicken "elbows" ...not sure what those are, little things mostly bone, tendon, skin, etc.

I've been wondering for years, if many "poor people" eat lesser qualities of meat, like what I call chicken "elbows" and there are maybe 100 poor people for every "richer person" who might eat better cuts of meat, so where or who is eating all the chicken breasts? And if they aren't eating them due to habit, but see in the shops that this meat is pretty cheap, why don't they try it?

My main complaint about Thai food, is the crap meat they put into things. If and when I buy it, I usually buy extra meat, extra fish balls, whatever, also extra veg, to make it healthier, and more protein, etc.

Anyway, my question to everyone, is WHO or WHERE do all the chicken breasts go, for all the people who are eating just the crap parts of the chicken? Think about China, and all those people eating only crap parts of the chicken, like the feet...so who eats the good parts? If most people are poor and learn to love these lesser parts of animals, who is eating the good parts, if nobody thinks those parts are GOOD?

Thailand is a huge exporter of chicken products, certainly to the UK and I imagine loads of other places, guess thats where a lot of the "Good Stuff" goes.

[amykat]

So, if all the "good meat" is being shipped off to the West, then do the poultry farmers in the West, in turn, ship the "crap parts" to Asia? Or some other market where those types of meat are considered good?

I think this would be the opposite problem and nobody in the West (to any reasonable degree) is eating chicken feet, elbows, etc. I guess wings are popular, for some totally unknown reasons for my tastes.

[Spoonman]

Do you think the processing of pork into hams/bacon/hotdogs is free ?

[Soutpeel]

here is my thought on processed meats...dont eat them then...they are bad for you anyway
Buy the fresh meat, at least you know whats in it.

If the UK and Europe ends up with horse meat in their beef burger, one can only imagine what Thai producers throw in their processed meats...

[SamsonSW]

I don't think even Australia exports much chicken, certainly most western countries produce mostly for domestic, even with automation labor costs do make a difference, stock feed depends on cheap upstream agriculture etc.

All the bits get used in every country, but in ours lots goes into pet food. At the bottom of the barrel is pig feed and fertilizer, probably after making soup stock.

And I wasn't talking about raw pork which isn't expensive, but smoked ham, which is a very small niche-market product hardly eaten by Thais at all, and very often priced over 1000 baht per kilo at high-end shops - for an inferior product often in my opinion. The "Bangkok Pork" shop also sells bulk hot dogs and other sausages, much cheaper than you find in supermarkets, probably much cheaper than ham, but I don't eat junk like that and I would not let children either.

[Soutpeel]

Anyway, my question to everyone, is WHO or WHERE do all the chicken breasts go,

Stored in a warehouse just outside Bangkok, next to the rice mountain...

[BuffaloRescue]

If you can buy port at about 140 baht... thats good quality cuts. Amazing people arent smoking this stuff and making ham. Its not expensive. All you need is salt and or smoke. And sell for 1000 baht!!

You can buy this terrible thai spam stuff at 7-11 its like 40 baht for about 100 grams or less. I imagine thats only about 50% meat.. or a lot less.

It is strange the best cuts of pork are the cheapest. And chicken breast and fillet very cheap compared with all the horrible bits.

Perhaps because meat used to be a lot less affordable in Thailand for the masses, so the poor got used to eating the horrible bits.. and have consequenty become like a delicacy? Just a thought

[SamsonSW]

Yes my wife made an arrangement with workers at the chicken down the road for them to save the feet for her because she missed the taste and couldn't find them in the shops.

I haven't found the nasty bits aren't in fact more expensive than the good bits, just not as proportionately cheap as I would have thought.

Note that if you're only spending 20-30 baht on the family's protein, you'll want the bits that make a good soup or sauce to flavor the vegetables, fat and marrow, where spending that amount on the lean fleshy cuts won't go too far.

[jaideeguy]

In CM, the price of pork [most cuts] is about 120-130/kilo and if processed into bacon, the price doubles. Still good value considering the loss of weight, extra ingredients, equipment, packaging, and distribution. I know, as I am now smoking my own bacon.....not just to save a few baht, but to get a unique superior product that I know what goes into it. Plus, it gives me some creative satisfaction............