Latest News From Beef

A steaming heap of manure large enough to fill a sporting arena once triggered an Iowa war between stockyards and city fathers.

November's USDA Cattle on Feed report estimated placements at 20-year lows and well below pre-report estimates, confirming this fall's bullish market has settled in for an extended stay.

Global demand for U.S. beef has been robust in 2022, providing increased value for both cattle producers and processors that export beef.

Profit margins for both cattle and hog finishing operations saw modest gains last week but also carry significantly higher feed costs than a year ago.

Profit margins for both cattle and hog finishing operations saw modest gains last week but also carry significantly higher feed costs than a year ago.

In one of the most bizarre spectacles in agriculture history, nicotine-addicted Judas goats once led sheep to slaughter down livestock’s version of the green mile.

Packers were successful in filling their needs at steady money this week as wholesale beef prices moved lower. Feedyards were content to reduce showlists but remaining cattle are priced higher.

The California State Water Resources Control Board says a group of ranchers illegally pumped water from the Shasta River in Siskiyou County.

Robust beef demand continues with retailers expecting the strongest sales this holiday season since before the pandemic. Strength on the demand side continues to pull cash cattle prices higher.

The nation’s fifth-largest beef packer will receive a grant from USDA that will help add 700 head to its daily harvest capacity.

Nearly one-third of Florida’s ranches suffered significant damage from Hurricane Ian with the state estimating losses of $215 to $262 million.

Cattle feeders refused some early bids last week and were rewarded with higher prices in all areas, resulting in another opportunity to clean up show lists.

Freight costs are likely to remain elevated through the winter, despite the recent decline in crude oil prices.

Rapidly rising wholesale beef prices kept packers actively looking to add inventory this week. Choice boxed beef closed Friday $16.64 per cwt. higher than two weeks ago.

Cash cattle trade was called active with packers seeking to add inventory. Retailer buying was also active as they anticipate a seasonal slowdown in supplies.

The Los Angeles, Calif., City Council voted unanimously to adopt its resolution in support of the Plant Based Treaty initiative, discouraging expansion of animal agriculture and promoting plant-based diets.

Brazilian meatpackers continue to procure cattle from inside the country’s protected areas more than a decade after zero-deforestation cattle agreements were signed to reform the sector.

Registration is open for the 2022 U.S. CattleTrace Symposium, to be held November 17 and 18 at the at the American Royal Center in Kansas City, MO.

Beef packers would like to own more cattle but they’re afraid showing their hand will only raise asking prices. Moderate trade occurred in all regions at slightly higher money.

The leader of one of America’s largest food and agriculture companies said the country’s farmers should be celebrated for their crucial role in providing food security, even if their work is sometimes overlooked.

The prolonged drought in the Southern Plains has continued to mean deeper culling of the cattle herd.  That's impacting the fall cattle run and should mean some stronger cattle prices. But when?

Market leverage has shifted dramatically toward ranchers and cattle feeders over the past two months. The combination of rising cattle prices and declining wholesale beef prices has eroded historic packer margins.

Beth Ford, CEO of Land O’Lakes, Inc. and a staunch advocate for connecting consumers to the people who grow their food, is featured at the Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Lecture at Kansas State on Oct. 11.

JBS USA announced it is closing its Planterra Foods business unit subsidiary with the OZO brand just two years after its launch.

A northwest Missouri man will serve two consecutive life sentences without possibility of parole after he pleaded guilty Friday to the 2019 murders of two Shawano County, Wisconsin, brothers.

Florida producers rushed to reach their cattle on Thursday after trees downed by Hurricane Ian broke fences and rain from the fierce storm flooded pastures.

Even a 10% reduction in U.S. beef exports and imports would cause a significant disruption to prices and quantities of both feeder cattle and fed cattle, according to a new economic analysis.

California passes a new law to encourage hunters to be more aggressive in reducing the state's feral pig population.

Western Legacy Development Corp. continues to search for a site to build its $1.1 billion beef processing facility after being rejected by two cities in the northern plains.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is proposing regulations to prevent meat companies from retaliating against livestock and poultry farmers who speak out on practices such as price-fixing.

Voters in Switzerland will decide on a referendum that would ban "factory farming" and tighten its already strict animal welfare regulations.

Virtual fencing system provides advanced technology to cattle producers and ranchers to manage natural resources more effectively.

The Justice Department says it has filed a memo in federal court with its recommended sentence for Washington rancher and cattle feeder Cody Easterday who pleaded guilty in a $244 million "ghost cattle" scheme.

Cheyenne, Wyoming's mayor fueled speculation about possible relocation of the Western Legacy beef packing project with his comments in a weekly column in Wyoming media.

America's dairy industry has been robust the last several decades. Now, larger average dairies are producing more beef-dairy crossbred calves that are much higher quality for producing beef.

Once operational in late 2024, American Foods Group's new beef facility in Warren County, Missouri, will process 2,400 head of cattle per day.

The Cattlemen’s Beef Board will invest $38.5 million into programs of beef promotion, research, consumer information, industry information, foreign marketing and producer communications during fiscal 2023.

The first of two trials for a Missouri man accused of killing two Wisconsin brothers is scheduled for Sept. 26, 2022. Garland Joseph Nelson has been held without bond since his arrest in July of 2019.

Sustainable Beef LLC received a giant boost in its efforts to bring a new, 1,500 head per day beef processing facility online with a commitment from Walmart.

Convicted of wire fraud and running a Ponzi scheme that raised $650 million from investors across the country, a couple now face decades in prison.

The average cost of feeding a steer to finish weight was 25% higher for cattle marketed last week and is projected to be 31% higher for cattle placed on feed last week at roughly $600 per head.

An appeals court ruled this week agricultural groups can intervene in a lawsuit seeking to keep gray wolves on the Endangered Species list.

Active trade pushed cash fed cattle prices higher again as the market has now advanced $7 over the last three weeks. Drought-induced feedyard placements created a modest surprise for analysts.

Construction will begin this fall on a $200 million upgrade to the existing beef complex and add employee facilities, including locker rooms, a cafeteria and office space.

Daniel Spitzer had three loves: Jesus, family/friends and cowboying. But his sister jokes his true love was his horse, Lena. Here's how a community honored Daniel's memory after a tragic accident took his life too soon.

The Alameda County, Calif., Board of Supervisors is set to consider banning wild cow milking contests in rodeos and the use of spurs and straps used by rodeo cowboys.

Amid continuing drought, the 2022 hay supply data illustrate why so much herd liquidation has occurred this year. It also speaks to the continuing challenges that cattle producers will face to get through the winter.

During a ceremony in downtown Amarillo, principals for Producer Owned Beef announced their plans for a 3,000-head per day beef packing facility that will break ground next year.

Sudden deaths late in the feeding phase are both frustrating and expensive. Simplot Land & Livestock says its research suggests genetic selection can greatly reduce the incidence of bovine congestive heart failure.

Despite chatter about a global economic slowdown, U.S. beef exports remain on a torrid pace in 2022. Pork exports fell short of last year's record pace.