Cattle producer profitability likely will be squeezed this year, but decent returns are possible, said Derrell Peel, Oklahoma State University extension livestock marketing specialist in the service’s “Cow/Calf Corner. Continued growth in beef production likely will pressure cattle and beef prices, Peel said.  There will be many economic conditions they can’t control that will have … Read More

The value of November US pork exports was the highest ever November total while beef export value advanced toward a record full-year of returns, according to data from the USDA and compiled by the US Meat Export Federation.   PORK   November pork exports totaled 223,962 tonnes, down slightly from a year ago, the USMEF … Read More

The US food supply “is among the most vulnerable and least protected of all potential targets for terrorism,” according to a study prepared for the National Institute of Justice by researchers and law enforcement officials around the country. A copy of the research paper was supplied by Nevil Speer, associate professor of agricultural economics at … Read More

Three questions for the US cattle industry entering 2018, according to Josh Maples, assistant professor of agricultural economics at Mississippi State University. Maples posed the questions to members of the Livestock Marketing Information Center in the weekly “In The Cattle Markets.”   HERD EXPANSION, EXPORTS AND MEAT PRODUCTION   The first question posed was “What … Read More

Outbreaks of avian influenza may not affect cattle producers directly, but the effect on affected poultry and egg producers and the economy cannot be denied. The effects can, however, be hard to measure since mitigation and containment measures are so swift and effective.  It may take a large outbreak so see past the local producer’s … Read More

Forecast quarterly declines in red meat and poultry production could provide mild early year support to wholesale prices but only if traders are watching only quarter-to-quarter changes. Year-over-year production of US red meat and poultry is expected to rise in 2018 along with per capita consumption rates. Data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and … Read More

During the week ended Tuesday, managed money, a proxy for large commodity investment funds, cut its net long live cattle futures position for the seventh straight week to its lowest point in 3 ½ months. At the same time, commercial traders, those who theoretically could make or take delivery of a futures contract, cut their … Read More