Total red meat supplies in freezers on Feb. 29 were down about 4% from the previous month and down about 13% from last year, according to the USDA’s monthly Cold Storage report Monday. Total frozen poultry supplies on Feb. 29, were down about 1% from the previous month and down about 5% from a year … Read More

Large commodity index funds, known as managed money, trimmed their collective net long live cattle futures position in the week ended Tuesday as hedgers cut their total net short position, The information came from the weekly Commitments of Traders report from the CFTC Friday.  The CFTC publishes its report weekly with information based on the … Read More

February’s 2022 Census of Agriculture from the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service provided some insight into the changing structure of cattle agriculture.   DWINDLING FARMS   Writing for the Livestock Marketing Information Center’s In the Cattle Markets, Matthew Diersen, risk and business management specialist at South Dakota State University, said, in 2022 there were 732,123 … Read More

While EU beef production is forecast to decline further in 2024 because of structural unprofitability and mounting environmental regulations, the EU pork supply is projected to rebound in 2024, said the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service in Europe in a semi-annual report.   SWINE HERD REBUILDING   That forecast was based on the Eurostat December census, … Read More

Over the last 14 years, USDA-reported average retail beef prices have risen more rapidly than retail prices for either pork or chicken, according to monthly data kept and compiled by the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver. Retail prices for pork also have risen over the period, but the bulk of the changes came in … Read More

By-products are a significant value component of the cattle and beef industry, but capturing the value of by-products is challenging, especially for small packers, said Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension livestock marketing specialist, in a letter called Cow-Calf Corner.   BY-PRODUCT PRODUCTION “ENORMOUS”   The beef industry produces an enormous set of edible and … Read More

Large commodity index funds, known as managed money, increased their collective net long live cattle futures position during the week ended Tuesday as hedgers extended their total net short positions. The data came from Friday’s weekly Commitments of Traders report from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.   MANAGED MONEY EXTENDS NET LONG CATTLE POSITION   … Read More