Lower live cattle futures prices have been discouraging cattle owners from locking in prices using forward contracts or futures, said Matthew Diersen, risk and business management specialist at South Dakota State University in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets. Pasture forage or water can run low.  Other feed supplies may … Read More

The number of cattle populating feedlots in Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada, on Dec. 1 was up from November and the 2017-2021 average but very near last year’s Dec. 1 count, according to data collected by CanFax, a private advisory group and compiled and released by the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver, Col. CanFax collects … Read More

A two-year study by Oklahoma State University researchers implied that extruded Dried Distillers Grains cube supplementation during grazing did not affect subsequent feedlot performance negatively and tended to result in higher carcass quality grade. A paper by OSU Animal and Food Scientist Paul Beck said, “with fewer days on feed in the feedlot positively related … Read More

Large commodity index funds, known as managed money, continued to sell live cattle futures in the week ended Tuesday as cattle owners reduced their net short positions. The information came from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report on Friday.   FUNDS LIQUIDATE LONGS   As of Tuesday, managed money had a … Read More

The USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service believes ample opportunities exist for US agricultural exports to South Korea. Relayed in a release, the FAS said, US agricultural product exports hit a record $9.5 billion in 2022, up 2% from 2021.  South Korea is the sixth largest export market for the US, thanks in part to a successful … Read More

Overall, primal beef values are exhibiting their regular seasonal price behavior, said David Anderson, Extension economist at Texas A&M University, in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets. The middle meats, largely the rib, are increasing in value while the end meats are declining in value, Anderson said.  For the year, … Read More

US pork exports posted another strong performance in October, led by record-large shipments to Mexico and broad-based growth elsewhere, according to data released by USDA and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation. October beef exports remained well below last year’s large totals but improved from September, led by stronger demand in Mexico and Taiwan, … Read More