# How much of Thanksgiving dinner is actually food?

The raw commodities on one plate are worth $0.44 at today's futures prices, $4.41 for 10 guests; at DataSnack's numbers for seven days from now, $0.44 a plate.

Futures prices for the raw commodity at the exchange's delivery grade, with a ham standing in for the turkey because DataSnack has no turkey model.

- Now: $0.44
- In seven days: $0.44

## The working

The value of the raw wheat, corn, pork, sugar, coffee and cocoa on one holiday plate at today's futures prices.

| Step | Expression | Now | In seven days |
| - | - | - | - |
| Wheat and corn | `(q_wheat * wheat / wheat_bu + q_corn * corn / corn_bu) / 100` | $0.04 | $0.04 |
| Pork | `q_pork * hogs / 100` | $0.25 | $0.25 |
| Sugar, coffee and cocoa | `(q_sugar * sugar + q_coffee * coffee) / 100 + q_cocoa * cocoa / ton_lb` | $0.16 | $0.16 |
| Raw commodities on one plate | `grain + pork + sweet` | $0.44 | $0.44 |
| The whole table | `plate * guests` | $4.41 | $4.44 |

Each name in an expression is an input below or an earlier step.

## What this runs on

### DataSnack's models

- `wheat`: [Wheat future](https://datasnack.ai/m/ch:1aa4d0a8e893), 593.50 cents/bu now (2026-11-13), 593.50 cents/bu in seven days; standing still: nothing has beaten it yet
- `corn`: [Corn future](https://datasnack.ai/m/ch:6eae3fafbc34), 446.00 cents/bu now (2026-11-13), 424.86 cents/bu in seven days
- `hogs`: [Lean hog future](https://datasnack.ai/m/ch:9c4df7441840), 61.47 cents/lb now (2026-11-13), 61.47 cents/lb in seven days; standing still: nothing has beaten it yet
- `sugar`: [Sugar future](https://datasnack.ai/m/ch:cbb1b6f479ae), 18.40 cents/lb now (2026-11-13), 18.40 cents/lb in seven days
- `coffee`: [Coffee future](https://datasnack.ai/m/ch:5c13f2c0aebd), 274.00 cents/lb now (2026-11-13), 284.10 cents/lb in seven days
- `cocoa`: [Cocoa future](https://datasnack.ai/m/ch:34cc93388c38), $5,267.00 per t now (2026-11-13), $5,267.00 per t in seven days

### Published figures

- `wheat_bu`: Pounds in a bushel of wheat, 60 lb ([USDA Economic Research Service, Weights, Measures, and Conversion Factors for Agricultural Commodities and Their Products (AH-697)](https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/pub-details?pubid=41881), read 2026-11-13)
- `corn_bu`: Pounds in a bushel of shelled corn, 56 lb ([USDA Economic Research Service, Weights, Measures, and Conversion Factors for Agricultural Commodities and Their Products (AH-697)](https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/pub-details?pubid=41881), read 2026-11-13)
- `ton_lb`: Pounds in a metric ton, 2,204.623 lb ([USDA Economic Research Service, Weights, Measures, and Conversion Factors for Agricultural Commodities and Their Products (AH-697)](https://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/pub-details?pubid=41881), read 2026-11-13)

### Your assumptions

- `q_wheat`: Wheat on the plate (rolls, stuffing, crust), 0.30 lb (change it on the page)
- `q_corn`: Corn on the plate, 0.10 lb (change it on the page)
- `q_pork`: Ham, as pork carcass weight, 0.40 lb (change it on the page)
- `q_sugar`: Sugar, 0.15 lb (change it on the page)
- `q_coffee`: Coffee beans, 0.03 lb (change it on the page)
- `q_cocoa`: Cocoa beans, 0.02 lb (change it on the page)
- `guests`: Guests, 10 guests (change it on the page)

Every model here is graded in public. Download the workbook and rebuild it.

## What this cannot tell you

A future is not a shelf price: milling, butchering, shipping, packaging and the shop's margin are most of what a grocery bill pays for.

## The record

This is a calculation, not a forecast. It is recomputed every day and its history is below.

Data: [CSV](https://datasnack.ai/feed/q/thanksgiving-plate-in-futures.csv) · [JSON](https://datasnack.ai/feed/q/thanksgiving-plate-in-futures.json) · [Workbook (Excel)](https://datasnack.ai/feed/q/thanksgiving-plate-in-futures.xlsx)

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Canonical: https://datasnack.ai/q/thanksgiving-plate-in-futures · Updated 13 Nov 2026 12:00 UTC · DataSnack forecasts are analysis, not investment advice.