With no evidence the US cattle herd has begun to expand again after years of decline, at least one specialist is saying it could begin within the next two years, but there’s a potential catch. Wesley Tucker, University of Missouri Extension agricultural business specialist, succession planner and national conference speaker, last week authored an article … Read More

As weekly wholesale 90% lean beef prices keep rising to record highs, the difference between them and their 50% lean counterparts is narrowing. Both products are ground into hamburger and blended to create the variety of lean-to-fat ratios seen in grocery store meat cases. Looking at graphed prices for the two from the Livestock Marketing … Read More

This article is authored by Paul Beck, Oklahoma State University beef cattle nutrition specialist and published in Cow-Calf Corner.  It is based on the thoughts he put together for a symposium at the American Society of Animal Science meeting held in Calgary “Increasing the Resilience of the Beef Cattle Feeder Supply.”  It has been edited … Read More

Large commodity index funds, known as managed money, decreased their collective net long live cattle futures positions during the week ended Tuesday as hedgers covered many of their net short positions. That was according to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s weekly Commitments of Traders report Friday.   FUNDS SELL CATTLE FUTURES   Tuesday, … Read More

The USDA Thursday projected per-capita consumption of red meat and poultry to decline next year, led by a pullback in beef, the USDA said in its July Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlook. Total per capita consumption of red meat and poultry is projected to decrease by 1.6 pounds to 226.1 pounds in 2025. “Consumption” actually … Read More

Lending at commercial banks associated directly with farm production strengthened in the second quarter, said Nate Kauffman and Ty Kreitman, economists at the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank, in a white paper Wednesday. According to a survey called Survey of Terms of Lending to Farmers, the volume of new operating loans increased 20% from the … Read More

So far, 2024 has been pretty kind to cattle feeders, with positive calculated average monthly returns in all but January and February. Strong, stable demand for choice beef along with declining output could be helping to keep feedlots in the black, a market analyst said.   K-STATE ASSESSMENT   Each month an updated assessment of … Read More