cow

The CEO of CattleFax is confident the beef industry will see better market conditions down the road.  Randy Blach said the market has faced many headwinds over the last three or four years.   “If you step back and you think about what we were sharing last fall and early this year, the markets have largely performed very well with what we anticipated, but obviously we had a Russian invasion into Uk

Last week's USDA cattle on feed report had even more evidence that supplies of fed cattle are shrinking and could eventually lead to a decline in beef production.  This, the USDA notes, has already appeared in higher prices up and down the chain.  USDA li...

R-CALF USA is making a push for Congress to consider mandatory country-of-origin labeling of beef.  The organization is encouraging its members and others to show their support to lawmakers for the American Beef Labeling Act.  The bill was introduced by Republican Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds, alongside Democrats Jon Tester and Cory Booker last month.     The legi...

Predicting farm income every year is a challenging task for a variety of reasons.  USDA Chief Economist Seth Meyer, said farm income should be strong this year despite a lot of volatility.   “When one looks at farm income and one looks at a very high scale, farm income looks pretty good. We're forecasting f...

Thanks to a perfect storm, the U.S. cattle industry is struggling right now, between drought across much of the west and heartland, low commodity prices and high input costs.  In other locations of the U.S., ranchers and some operations have liquidated or consolidated in response the economic challenges.   ...

Senators John Thune and Ben Ray Luján recently introduced the Livestock Disaster Assistance Improvement Act.  The bipartisan legislation by the South Dakota Republican and New Mexico Democrat would improve the effectiveness and timeliness of multiple Department of Agriculture programs that assist farmers and ranchers in the aftermath of adverse weather events.  The legislatio...

Cattle ranchers in West Texas are strapping fit-bits on their cows.  The fitness trackers keep track of the herd's movements at a time when the industry is facing a labor shortage.  Instead of wrapping them around their hooves, they're worn as ear tags and collars.    The...

Cattlemen know about general cattle nutrition, but beyond the basics, there are a lot of details that can trip you up.  Dusty Abney, cow-calf nutritionist with Cargill Animal Nutrition, said dry matter is one those foundational pieces.  If it’s...

The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service published a Notice to Trade related to the Cattle Contracts Library Pilot Program.  The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association said the Library is designed to be a tool for cattle producers, making information available that may allow them to capture unrealized value for their livestock.   “We are plea...

The USDA extended the application deadline for Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative Cooperative Agreements to October 6th.  USDA is investing up to $12 million in partnerships that expand access to conservation technical assistance for livestock producers and increase the use of conservation practices on grazing lands.  Pr...