A new report out by Rabobank says cattle prices were strong through the first quarter of 2022 but the fourth quarter may be something different. Cattle prices Cattle prices across the seven major exporting countries remained strong through quarter one. Low inventory and favorable seasons in Australia continue to support cattle prices, while firm consumer […]

After the withdrawal of the previous chief ag negotiator nominee, the White House officially nominated long-time USDA adviser Doug McKalip to the post. McKalip currently serves as the senior adviser to the USDA secretary and has been with USDA for 29 years. Many ag trade issues have moved slowly without the presence of either a […]

Livestock feed is often the greatest annual cost to producers, making grasslands and grassland management an important component of the livestock industry. Profitable and effective grassland livestock management begins with understanding the forage resource, including identifying the plants in the pasture. To manage grassland profitably, managers must be able to identify what plants are there, […]

A few months ago, Kenny wrote about beef cow slaughter outpacing 2021 levels. He discussed how drought and cull cow prices, among other factors, were contributing to high beef cow slaughter totals in 2022. I want to follow up on his article with the most recent data and also discuss some of the regional breakdowns of cow […]

One of the adages that makes analysis of cattle and beef markets so difficult is that the playing out of somewhat observable supply and demand scenarios seems to take so long – possibly twice as long as you might think.  That said, the cattle and beef markets appear to be returning to much needed and […]

Grocery and gas prices are on the rise, and sticker-shocked consumers are looking for ways to cope and stick to their budgets. University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment meat scientist Gregg Rentfrow and agricultural economist Kenny Burdine recently offered some insight into the situation and how to deal with it. “Spikes in […]

The Senate advanced the nomination of Dr. Chavonda J. Jacobs-Young to be USDA undersecretary of agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics. The Senate Agriculture Committee took up her nomination in a business meeting in January and held a hearing on her nomination in November 2021. Nearly 100 industry groups and stakeholders expressed support for Jacobs-Young’s […]

Max Armstrong continues his discussion about food inflation looking at chicken and seafood. The price of chicken breasts has risen to heights not seen since the 1980s thanks to avian influenza which has hit more than 21 million commercial herds including commercial broilers. And exports of chicken aren’t slowing, putting more price pressure on chicken. […]