Brisket Shortage Has BBQ Lovers Gnashing Their Teeth

Drought conditions are forcing ranchers to thin their cattle herds, and that means there’s a shortage of brisket, the front-end cut of beef that’s emblematic of Texas barbecue.

Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn tells Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson that higher commodity prices have even forced one best-in-state barbecue restaurant to close down recently.

Vaughn says brisket prices have gone up 60 percent from last year, and “without brisket, it just wouldn’t be Texas barbecue at all.”

• Related: Searching For The Best BBQ In Texas

Guest

• Daniel Vaughn, Texas Monthly barbecue editor and author of “The Prophets of Smoked Meat: A Journey Through Texas Barbecue.” He tweets @BBQsnob.

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