To remain profitable cow-calf producers need to add value where they can to increase the demand for their calves, and some management and health programs consistently increase sale price of beef calves, said Oklahoma State University Beef Nutrition Specialist Paul Beck, in a letter to Extension Agents called Cow-Calf Corner. An analysis of calf sales … Read More

With the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report coming this week, it pays to pay attention to the competition. Sow slaughter through mid-March was tracking slightly more than the same period a year ago, said the Livestock Marketing Information Center in a letter to Extension agents.  Year-to-date, weekly sow slaughter was more than 544,000 head, up … Read More

Total red meat production this far into 2023 is tracking relatively close to last year and the 2017-2021 average, but the seasonal trend is for output to decline into early summer. Total red meat production includes veal, lamb and mutton, which comprises a small, but occasionally important piece of the whole. Data from the USDA … Read More

Large commodity index firms, better known as managed money, unloaded live cattle futures contracts in a big way the last two weeks as hedgers covered their own short positions, according to data from the Commodity Futures Trade Commission Friday. The data came from the CFTC’s Commitments of Traders report Friday, which had been interrupted for … Read More

Feb. 28 total red meat supplies in freezers were down about 3% from the previous month but up about 2% from last year, according to the USDA’s monthly Cold Storage report Thursday. Total frozen poultry supplies on Feb. 28, were up about 3% from the previous month and up about 10% from a year ago, … Read More

Cattle markets are approaching the end of the first quarter of 2023 on a very strong note, said Stephen Koontz, agricultural economist at Colorado State University, in a Livestock Marketing Information Center letter called In The Cattle Markets.   ROBUST PRICES   Animal prices across the board have been very robust, Koontz said.  Fed cattle … Read More

Southern Plains feeder and stocker steer prices are higher than might be expected for this time of year, and they may be influencing herd rebuilding decisions. Every producer is different, though, a market analyst said.  Conditions and costs will vary, as will the cost of money, which is going up. With the end of La … Read More