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AgDay’s Clinton Griffiths shares an update on this week’s top headlines.

Beef packers saw their margins decline to the lowest level since before the Tyson packing plant fire August 9 as beef cutout prices declined and cash cattle prices increased.

Sharply higher beef cutout values produced windfall profits for beef packers last week while cattle feeders saw closeouts with average losses about steady, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

Beef packer margins increased another $45 per head for the week ending March 27 while a rally in cash prices pulled feedyard closeouts into the black.

Cattle and hog feeding margins declined significantly the week ending April 25, 2020, as harvest capacity at both beef and pork facilities was significantly reduced by the coronavirus pandemic.

Cattle feeding losses were estimated at $194 per head the week ending July 11, a $60 per head improvement over the previous week, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

The six-week long rally in fed cattle prices pulled feeding margins to within $20 of breakeven last week, while pork producer margins saw only slight change.

A seven-week rally in negotiated cash fed cattle prices has finally lifted average cattle feeding margins to profitability. Pork producer margins remain underwater.

After a one-week reprieve, cattle feeding margins are back in the red. Pork producers saw a $7 per head improvement, but remain below breakeven.

Both cattle and hog finishing margins improved modestly last week, with cattle slightly above and hogs slightly below breakeven.