Chicken Wing Shortage Threatens Super Bowl Parties
January 25, 2013 5:05 AM 
It may not rank up there with the fiscal cliff or debt ceiling but there may be another crisis looming as we edge closer to Super Bowl Sunday, February 3. The National Chicken Council is reporting there may be a shortage of Super Bowl party staple chicken wings. No, this isn’t a manufactured crisis but an economic one.
According Bill Roengik of the Council,
“Chicken companies produced about one percent fewer birds last year, due in large part to record high corn and feed prices. Corn makes up more than two-thirds of chicken feed and corn prices hit an all-time high in 2012, due to two reasons: last summer’s drought and pressure from a federal government requirement that mandates 40 percent of our corn crop be turned into fuel in the form of ethanol. Simply put, less corn equals higher feed costs, which means fewer birds produced.”
via Americans to Eat 1.23 Billion Chicken Wings Super Bowl Weekend | The National Chicken Council.
The report goes on to say 1.23 billion wing portions will be consumed during Super Bowl weekend this year, as fans watch the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens battle for NFL supremacy. How many wings is that? If laid end to end, they would stretch from Candlestick Park in San Francisco to M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore 27 times. If the scarcity and expense of chicken wings worries you be advised most restaurants have planned well in advance and should be well stocked.
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