Butterball talks turkey: Fewer fresh birds this season

This year's Thanksgiving centerpiece may be a little harder to come by for fresh turkey lovers.

The nation's largest turkey producer, Butterball LLC, announced it will be shipping out about half as many large, fresh, never-frozen turkeys to retailers this year, according to a report from USA Today.

The shortage only applies to 16 pound or greater fresh turkeys. Smaller fresh turkeys will still ship as usual.

According to the report, Butterball declined to specify a reason for the shortage, but indicated a decline in weight gain on company farms.

USA Today noted this year, Butterball will produce about 41 million turkeys – weighing a combined 1.2 billion pounds. One in every four Thanksgiving turkeys are Butterball brand, according to the report.

Read more from USA Today.