THE PROTEIN PULSE — DRIVE TIME Closing Bell Friday | October 30th, 2026

HOST: Protein Pulse Drive Time. Closing Bell Friday, October 30th. From The Sparks Group.

SHAWN: Look at corporate earnings this week. More pounds don't guarantee more profit. Pilgrim's Pride watched EBITDA collapse fifty percent as U.S. chicken supply expanded. Smithfield lost eighty-nine million dollars in fresh pork while making two hundred thirty million downstream in packaged meats. Sterling estimates beef packers earned fifty-four a head while feedlots lost two hundred twenty-six. If you're buying off broad averages, you're flying blind. Stop chasing headline slaughter numbers. Manage your costs by the specific cut and customer channel. Volume is vanity. Item-level execution pays the bills.

HOST: Choice grade cutout at three sixty-seven twenty-eight, down one seventy-two. Pork cutout at seventy oh sixty-nine. Belly primal at sixty-five sixty-nine, down ten ninety-three. Fresh eighty-fives at three oh four. West Texas Crude at one oh two. Ultra-Low Sulfur Diesel at four fifty-nine.

SHAWN: DoorDash proposed a seventeen billion dollar acquisition of Instacart. USDA plans additional pork and chicken purchases. Prioritize belly and ground-beef trim negotiations. Stay disciplined.

HOST: Protein Pulse Drive Time. Shawn Sparks, The Sparks Group.

SHAWN: Stay disciplined.