Impact of pork and beef price changes on wild game carcass prices in years 2005-2016

Because of the ever−changing nature of the environment, the limited availability of natural resources, and the increased number of people in the world, modifications in food production can be very important. In order to prevent irreversible damage occurring in the natural environment, food sources that are an alternative to pig meat, beef and poultry from industrial production are being sought. An alternative may be the meat of slow−moving animals. The studies show the impact of livestock (such as pigs and cattle) price changes in comparison to wild game purchase prices. An average correlation was found (r=–0.536) between unit purchase prices of pig livestock and unit purchase prices of wild boar. Regarding the changes in the purchase prices of beef livestock and the purchase prices of the deer carcasses, a weak correlation was observed (r=0.219), while a lack of correlation (r=–0.012) was found between the change in the price of beef and roe−deer. On the basis of the conducted studies, it was stated that in the situation of predicting prices for carcasses of game animals in Poland, information on the apparently substitutive good of farm animals should not be included. The average or low level of correlation, or in case of roe−deer carcass – the lack of correlation between the prices of farmed animals and the prices of wild game, make it possible to conclude that the processes taking place on the analyzed markets in terms of price developments were separate and unrelated