Sid Miller, commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture, says the risk of highly pathogenic avian influenza impacting beef cattle in the state's panhandle – where dairy cows have been infected – is minimal.
Last week’s rally to new record prices pushed packer and feeder margins in opposite directions. Pork producer margins continue higher with prices now above year ago.
Methodical grind. There’s no question talent makes a difference, but what makes the biggest difference is commitment -- the daily decision to choose to work hard and show up.
The spread between cattle feeding margins and beef packer margins has now reached $500 per head as packing losses increase. Pork producer margins are the highest of the year.
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.
Momentum continues to build for cattle feeders as closeouts saw average profits increasing during the final week of 2021. Farrow-to-finish hog operations continue with negative profit margins.
Cattle feeders saw average profit margins exceed $200 per head last week while pork producers found losses of $44 per head, according to the Sterling Profit Trackers.
The Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club is suing the Iowa Department of Natural Resources in an effort to stop a 11,600-head feedlot in Clayton County that lies near Bloody Run Creek.
Legislative proposals aimed at the U.S. livestock markets could have a negative impact on farmers and ranchers they are intended to protect, Meat Institute argues ahead of Thursday’s House Ag Committee hearing.
JBS says it seeks opportunities for acquisitions and expansion, but two U.S. senators are calling on the U.S. Treasury Secretary to open an investigation into the Brazilian meatpacker.
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker re-introduced his Farm System Reform Act, a bill he says would “transform a broken system.” NCBA calls the proposal "misguided."
JBS USA said it paid an $11 million ransom to cyber attackers that shut down operations in the U.S. and Australia last week. All plants were fully operational by June 3.
Cattle prices held steady last week, but packer margins continue climbing in the greatest squeeze on cattlemen in memory without the influence of a specific black swan event. Pork producers are experiencing euphoria.
The extended rally in lean hog carcass prices continues and farrow-to-finish hog operations are profitable for the 12th consecutive month. Cattle feeders saw prices slip off of recent highs.
Cattle and hog feeding operations are experiencing the highest market prices since before the pandemic began more than a year ago. Hog margins were positive for the 11th consecutive week.
Cattle and hog feeding both saw solid average profits for the week ending April 2, boosted by higher average farmgate prices. Cattle were positive for the second week, while positive hog margins entered a third month.
Cash prices for both cattle and hogs advanced last week leaving feeding margins for both species solidly in the black. Hog margins were positive for the eighth consecutive week and cattle climbed out of the red.
Market hogs found twice the profit margin of fed steers last week due to a rally that has added nearly $22 per cwt. to lean hog carcass prices over the past month, while cash cattle prices have been stuck in neutral.
Cattle and hog finishing margins were headed in opposite directions last week, with lean hog prices enjoying a three-week rally while cattle prices were stuck in neutral for a second week.
Cattle feeding margins were little changed from the previous week with modest profits. Hog feeding margins were boosted for a third week with another advance in lean carcass prices.
Beef packer leverage is evident with cash cattle prices $7 per cwt. lower than the same week a year ago and beef cutout prices $23 per cwt. higher. Pork producers are gaining leverage with a $5 per cwt. price rally.
Cash fed cattle prices ended last week $10 per cwt. lower than last year while the beef cutout closed $16 higher than the same week a year ago. The result? Packer margins $314 per head more than last year.
While Tyson's lawyers were filing a lawsuit on Monday against one of the packer’s largest cattle suppliers, the ink was still drying on the sale of one of that supplier’s feedlots to one of Tyson’s competitors.
Claiming losses of "more than $200 million" in connection with "200,000 cattle that did not exist," Tyson asks for a court-appointed receiver to takeover Easterday Ranches in Washington state.
Cattle and hog finishing profit margins were little changed from last week, with modest profits for cattle and losses for hogs. Beef packer margins declined again to their lowest mark since March.
Average cattle feeding margins improved $20 per head last week, which beef packer margins declined 17%. Farrow-to-finish operations recorded per head losses for the fourth consecutive week.
On a percentage basis, beef packer margins declined significantly last week. It's all relative, of course, since the starting point from the previous week was stunning.
Cattle and hog finishing margins were modestly positive the first week of December, marking the 11th consecutive week of profitability. Packer margins remain historically high.
Closeouts on cattle and hogs marketed last week remain modestly profitable for the sixth consecutive week, according to calculations by Sterling Marketing.
Both cattle feeding and hog finishing operations found modest profits for the fifth consecutive week calculated on a cash basis, according to the Sterling Profit Tracker.
Cattle and hog finishing margins are both positive for the fourth consecutive week despite the fact cash prices for cattle and hogs were slightly lower last week.
Average cattle and hog finishing margins are both positive for the third consecutive week, according to calculations in the Sterling Marketing Profit Tracker.
The antitrust class-action lawsuit alleging America’s largest beef packers conspired to fix cattle prices has been dismissed by a federal judge in Minnesota.
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.
For the first time ever, the government has shut down the economy due to a pandemic. U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley said the government needs to put some thought into what that means and analyze how relief packages are used.
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.
After reaching historic levels earlier this fall, beef packer margins have experienced steady declines over the past month as cattle prices have increased.
Feedyard closeouts improved modestly last week with a $1 increase in cash fed cattle prices. Packer margins increased on the extended rally to the beef cutout price.
Last week’s $1 increase in cash fed cattle prices did little for feedyard profits, but the $6.40 rally in wholesale beef prices added another $25 onto already large packer margins.
Workplace injuries in American meat and poultry processing and packing facilities has reached an all-time low, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The combination of shrinking packer profits and smaller feedyard losses over the past six weeks has reduced the packer/feeder margin spread by 27%, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.
Improvements in feedlot margins were ever so slight last week due to a $1 gain in cash fed cattle prices. Pork producers saw a $5 per head improvement.
