There’s No Chicken Wings Shortage

Due to a lot of establishments being closed during this pandemic, there have been shortages of some important items. Food and sanitary items are few of the resources that are hard to find these days. While the majority are looking for what they need, here’s one resource that is still abundant: chicken wings. That’s right, chicken wings aren’t really flying off the shelves. Usually, chicken wings are eaten in bars and restaurants, and they are difficult to repackage for retail, as Vice details:

Obviously countless restaurants and sports bars are closed across the country now too, and chicken wings aren't necessarily high on customers' takeout list. Super estimates that 70 percent of wings are eaten in bars or restaurants, with the other 30 percent coming from supermarket or deli sales. They're not exactly flying off the shelves right now though –– and that's partially because it can be difficult to repackage them for the retail market.

"When you sell to food service, it's in a big bulk container," Russ Whitman, senior vice president at commodities market firm Urner Barry, said. "When you sell it to me and you, it has to be in a tray or a bag that we can pick up. Not all facilities can do that."

There's no real consumer demand for chicken wings right now—despite the fact that other meat sales are surging. The National Chicken Council reports that meat department sales were up by 76.9 percent during the week of March 15, when compared to that same week one year ago, with chicken sales jumping by $183 million. Chicken breasts made up more than half of the sales total, followed by chicken thighs, and chicken legs. (The biggest seller overall was ground beef, which was up by 73.1 percent compared to this time last year.)

If you're into chicken wings, though, and are cool with making them at home, there's a chance that they could become one of the best bargains in the meat case. On Wednesday, the wholesale price for a pound of wings was $1.25, 35 cents a pound lower than they were at the beginning of the month. It could be a decent time to stock up—and you don't have to sleep in a Buffalo Wild Wings to get them.