TOP STORIES

Farm Lawsuit Alleges Collusion Against Startups -- Market Talk

0841 ET - Antitrust pressure increases on the US agricultural sector, with a new lawsuit alleging that big crop seed and pesticide suppliers colluded to keep prices high by refusing to sell to online platforms that advertise lower prices. A lawsuit filed in a federal court in Illinois accuses Bayer, Corteva, Syngenta and others of a coordinated "boycott" of nascent agricultural e-commerce companies Farmers Business Network and AgVend, and alleges that reduced competition meant higher prices for seed and pesticides. Spokesmen for the defendant companies said the charges had no merit, that farm supply markets were competitive, and that the companies would defend themselves. The Wall Street Journal last year reported how FBN's plan to create an Amazon-like market for farm supplies had met stiff pushback from established industry players. (jacob.bunge@wsj.com; @jacobbunge)

Tyson Foods Partners With Matrix to Help U.S. Staff Get Covid-19 Shots

Tyson Foods Inc. is partnering with a clinical-services company to help the meat producer's staff in the U.S. get vaccinated for Covid-19.

The company Wednesday said it is working with Matrix Medical Network to support vaccine communication, administration and counseling at Tyson facilities starting early this year.

STORIES OF INTEREST

Kraft's Mac & Cheese Container to Get Recyclable Revamp

Kraft Heinz Co. is developing and testing a recyclable fiber-based microwaveable cup for its Mac & Cheese brand.

The food company also intends to release a new Kraft Mac & Cheese shapes variety toward the end of the year using the new cup and design, it said.

Brexit May Cause UK Food Suppliers to Lose Export Trade -- Market Talk

1609 GMT - Problems facing the U.K. food industry and grocers in supplying products to Northern Ireland following the U.K.'s EU departure could be just the tip of the Brexit iceberg, Oghma Partners says. With Northern Ireland replicating EU rules, the difficulties emerging in supplying the province are the 'canary in the coal mine' for supply problems into the greater EU single market, the corporate-finance house says. "For the food industry, the disruption is an unwelcome and unnecessary challenge on top of Covid-19 problems," says Oghma's Mark Lynch. "Without a work-around solution--an acceptance that U.K.-EU farming practices are equivalent and that [U.K.] rules won't diverge [from those of] the EU--it seems some food export markets will be lost forever."(philip.waller@wsj.com)

Corner Store Owner Couche-Tard in Merger Talks With Europe's Carrefour

PARIS -- French retailer Carrefour SA and Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. said they are discussing a potential tie up that could create a $53 billion grocery and convenience store giant, as large retailers come under pressure to transform their bricks-and-mortar footprint amid pandemic restrictions on shopping and disruption from tech giants.

A merger would forge one of the world's largest retailers, while combining two companies with very different formats and geographical footprints. Retailers are in a rush to find new ways to get food to customers ordering online as the spread of Covid-19 has massively accelerated online grocery shopping, including click-and-collect.

FUTURES MARKETS

Hog Futures Extend Decline -- Market Talk

15:24 ET - Lean hog futures on the CME down again Wednesday, with the most-active contract off 2.4% to 66.85 cents per pound. This makes it 7 out of the last 8 sessions that hog futures dropped--a 6.4% decline. Pork cutouts have also fallen, with pork bellies shaving 10.5% in that time period. Live cattle futures also losing ground Wednesday, dropping 0.2% to $1.1225 per pound. (kirk.maltais@wsj.com; @kirkmaltais)

CASH MARKETS 


 
Estimated U.S. Pork Packer Margin Index - Jan 13 
 
All figures are on a per-head basis. 
 
Date     Standard Margin       Estimated margin 
         Operating Index         at vertically - 
                             integrated operations 
 
Jan 13       +$ 40.76            +$ 35.00 
Jan 12       +$ 44.86            +$ 37.42 
Jan 11       +$ 61.64            +$ 46.91 
 
* Based on Iowa State University's latest estimated cost of production. 
A positive number indicates a processing margin above the cost of production of the animals. 
 
Beef-O-Meter 
This report compares the USDA's latest beef carcass composite 
values as a percentage of their respective year-ago prices. 
 
                                  Beef 
          For Today              Choice  100.2 
      (Percent of Year-Ago)      Select   95.6 
 
USDA Boxed Beef, Pork Reports

Wholesale choice-grade beef prices Wednesday rose $1.86 per hundred pounds, to $211.00, according to the USDA. Select-grade prices rose 97 cents per hundred pounds, to $199.06. The total load count was 143. Wholesale pork prices fell $1.13, to $76.68 a hundred pounds, based on Omaha, Neb., price quotes.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-13-21 1701ET