NWFCS: Cattle Should See Profits, Dairy Below Breakeven

Northwest Farm Credit Services is out with its quarterly outlook on commodities from across the region.  Karen Witt, Vice President at NWFCS said they expect slightly profitable returns for cattle producers over the next 12 months.

“Drought in the Midwest pushed calves into feed lots sooner than expected, which created the most cattle on feed since data collection began back in 1996.  June slaughter rates are equally high, at 685,000 head per week.  Domestic consumption and export demand continue to grow, helping offset high supplies.”

She said while trade uncertainty is pushing feed costs downward, export demand could be in jeopardy.  As far as diaries are concerned, Witt says the expectation is producers will remain below the breakeven point over the next year.

“However, the fundamentals of supply and demand, remain encouraging as both dairy product exports and domestic cheese consumption in April reached the highest level ever recorded. Tariff rhetoric drove July Class III Milk futures down 14% in a month.”

Join us Friday as we turn our attention to tree fruit, and check in on apples and cherries.

If you have a story idea for the Washington Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail gvaagen@cherrycreekradio.com