The US cattle herd is well into a transition to very modest growth from one of active herd expansion, but what does this imply for the cattle industry? Tuesday, the subject of the industry’s cyclical change was discussed with a review of the first half of a mid-year review and outlook by the Denver-based Livestock … Read More

The US beef cattle industry is transitioning from aggressive herd expansion to very modest growth, which will translate into a rather modest annual increase in beef production next year, said the Livestock Marketing Information Center in a midyear industry analysis and outlook. That analysis will be dealt with today and tomorrow, with today dealing with … Read More

The USDA’s monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report Friday raised its estimate of US chicken production enough to bring its forecast for 2018 meat production up, overcoming expected declines in beef pork and turkey output.   BROILER PRODUCTION ESTIMATE UP   Second-quarter broiler production was raised 10.680 billion pounds from 10.640 billion on … Read More

As US pork output exceeds demand and begins to stack up in cold storage, beef demand soldiers on, largely keeping up with increased production, said Scott Brown, livestock economist at the University of Missouri, in an article written for Penton and supplied to Zia by Brown. Meat production increases over the last few months have … Read More

Agricultural Producer sentiment fell sharply in July as the effect of commodity price declines and concerns about agricultural trade prospects weighed on producers’ perceptions of current and future conditions in the ag economy, said a report from Purdue University Agricultural Economists James Mintert and Michael Langemeier in a report for the Center for Commercial Agriculture … Read More

First-half 2018 US beef exports set records in volume and value, and pork exports remained ahead of the 2017 pace, although June shipments were lower than a year ago for the second straight month, according to data released by the USDA and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation.   RECORD FIRST HALF FOR BEEF … Read More

Current breakeven and fed cattle price projections suggest losses to cattle feeders will continue for the rest of 2018, said Michael Langemeier, Department of Agriculturaol and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the Illinois Extension Service’s Farmdocdaily. However, prospects for early 2019 are considerably brighter, Langemeier said. Given the recent stability … Read More