From the Ohio State Univ. Beef Team:
Down Go the Cattle Numbers – Again – Chris Hurt, Extension Economist, Purdue University
The nation’s beef herd continues to decline. After several years of financial difficulty, producers show no interest in rebuilding the herd. As a result, beef supplies will continue to decline and prices will remain strong for several years to come. On the down side, however, beef consumption per person will lag and other animal species will gain larger market share in coming years, especially chicken.
The USDA estimates that beef cow numbers as of July 1, 2010 dropped to 31.7 million head, a decline of two percent from a year ago. Milk cow numbers were down one percent. Just as importantly, producers reported they were retaining two percent fewer beef heifers to go back into the herds. This seemingly assures that beef cow numbers will continue to drop into early 2011.
Read entire letter here.
