Latest News From Greg Henderson

Cattle and hog feeders find dramatically lower feed costs compared to last year with higher live anumal sales prices. Beef packers continue to struggle with negative margins.

A lone juror stood between rancher George Kelly and innocent. “It is what it is, and it will be what it will be. Let me go home, okay?”

Cash cattle markets edged lower and while wholesale beef and futures markets were mixed. Cattle on Feed totals were up for the seventh consecutive month and placements lower than expected.

Cattle and hog feeders are benefitting from dramatically lower grain and feed costs this year while live animal sale prices are higher. Profit margins for both species have doubled in the past month.

Thanks to a reader's observation, another county has been added to our list of those with more than 50,000 beef cows.

Negotiated cash cattle prices moved lower again under pressure from sinking futures markets. The red-hot hamburger market kept pushing most utility cows higher.

Cherry County Neb. remains the U.S. County with the most beef cows, according to the 2022 Census of Agriculture. South Dakota has seven counties ranked in the Top 33 while Texas has five.

The margin spread between packer losses and feedyard profits expands as wholesale beef prices continue their retreat. Pork producer profits continue increasing.

Finished cattle, feeders, calves and the futures markets were all in retreat as the HPAI event becomes the latest beef industry black swan.

Colorado officials have confirmed the first wolf depredation of a calf since gray wolves were reintroduced in the state in December 2023.

Packer and feeder margins continue trending in opposite directions as declining wholesale beef prices erase any improvement packers may have seen from lower cash cattle prices. Pork producer profits steady.

News of HPAI in dairies in the southern plains gave futures bears reason to react early last week, and the negative psychology spilled over into the cash trade as all regions traded lower.

Cherry County, Nebraska, and Connecticut are about the same size in square miles, but which one has the most beef cow operations? The answer may surprise you.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to reinstate rules protecting endangered plants and animals, action that would reverse changes made during the Trump Administration that weakened the Endangered Species Act.

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.

Cattle feeders displayed their market leverage this week as active trading pushed prices to new record highs. Friday’s Cattle on Feed report identified another strong placement increase.

Cattle feeding margins show improvement with higher prices. Beef packer losses remain in triple digits as market-ready supplies remain tight. Pork producer margins gain on higher prices.

Firefighters were dispatched to National Beef's 6,000-head per day facility in Liberal, Kansas, Wednesday evening.

The Ogallala Aquifer Summit brings diverse stakeholders and policy makers together to collaborate on how best to manage the High Plains’ precious water resources into the future.

All classes of cattle sold at higher prices for the week and most are at or near record highs. Supplies of all classes remain extremely tight.

In a near decade-long effort to create giant sheep hybrids in the U.S. with the goal of selling the trophy species to captive hunting ranches, the defendant violated federal wildlife trafficking regulations.

Cattle feeding margins improved as prices advanced. Beef packer margins improved but losses remain in triple digits as market-ready supplies remain tight. Pork producer margins gain on higher prices.

Two southeast Colorado ranchers agreed to pay more than $6.5 million in fines and will serve time in prison for tampering with NOAA rain gauges in a scheme to collect federal crop insurance.

Negotiated cattle prices moved higher again as supplies continue tightening. Packers are caught in significant margin squeeze with marketing leverage continuing to favor cattle feeders.

Pork exports begin the year on a torrid pace while beef export values jump 9%. Lamb exports put up highest value in more than four years.

Cattle feeding margins inched lower last week with rising costs. Packer margins improved but remain in triple digits as market-ready supplies remain tight. Pork producers turn a profit for the first time in 14 months.

Meat and poultry industry trade groups were quick to criticize USDA's announcement of changes to the Packers and Stockyards Act claiming the changes add unnecessary regulations and costs.

After burning for more than six days, the Smokehouse Creek Fire in the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma was only 15% contained Sunday morning. Drifting sand now poses a threat to rural roads.

All classes of cattle and futures prices moved higher for the week ending March 1. April live cattle closed at the highest level since early November.

Nebraska officials say a mower ignited a wildfire that burned roughly 110 square miles of central Nebraska grasslands.

While the Smokehouse Creek Fire rapidly became the state's largest in history, four other wildfires are burning in the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandle area. (Additional images contained in story.)

Devastating wildfires are burning in the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandle region and the Smokehouse Creek Fire has already become the second largest in Texas history, consuming at least three-quarters of a million acres.

Cattle feeding margins improved significantly the past month, crossing into positive territory last week. Beef packers continue to struggle with tight supplies. Pork producers reach breakeven.

Cash cattle posted solid gains this week as futures prices closed the week with four-month highs. Friday’s Cattle on Feed report met expectations with the exception of placements, which were higher than anticipated.

America's cattlemen continue to resist any traceability policy that is not strictly voluntary. But how long will stakeholders up the chain continue to give beef a pass?

Cattle feeding margins have improved significantly the past month, yet losses remain the norm. Beef packers continue to struggle with tight supplies and range-bound wholesale beef prices. Pork inches toward breakeven.

Cash cattle traded lower in all regions for the first time in more than a month, but futures prices rose Friday to the highest levels in nearly four months.

Improving prices for live cattle helped boost cattle feeding margins to near breakeven, but higher bids pushed beef packer margins deeper into the red. Pork producers also found improved margins but remain in the red.

Fed cattle broke through $180 barrier this week, establishing the highest prices since the week ending November 3 and cattle feeders continue to gaining leverage.

Improving prices for live cattle helped boost cattle feeding margins but the higher bids and lower wholesale beef prices turned packer margins negative. Pork producers also found improved margins but remain in the red.

Bullish traders showed their hand at the CME pushing April LC to a three-month high and helping spur a solid rally in cash cattle markets. Inventory report confirms tight supplies will remain for the near future.

Improving prices for live cattle and wholesale beef lifted margins for both feeders and packers. Pork producers also found improved margins but remain in the red.

The January thaw across most of the cattle feeding regions helped spur the year's first weekly gains for market-ready cattle. The rally was noticed by traders in Chicago as futures markets posted 10-week highs.

A federal jury awarded a Tennessee couple nearly half a million dollars in damages after their cow herd was seized without a warrant and sold at auction by a local sheriff's office.

Weather continues disrupting shipping and harvest operations for livestock producers across the Corn Belt and Central Plains as both cattle and hog feeding losses continue to mount.

A mid-January deep-freeze failed to deliver any bounce to cattle markets as packers appear flush with formula and contracted inventories. Friday's Cattle on Feed report fell within expectations.

Technology and robust data management will allow more cattlemen and smaller processors access to USDA graders to remotely assign official quality grades for beef carcasses, providing an opportunity to increase value.

Winter weather dominated livestock markets the second full week of the year with slowing harvest and transportation. Cattle and hog prices were steady and margins improved modestly, yet losses remain significant.

Brutal winter weather disrupted cattle markets and significantly curtailed cattle harvest in western Kansas. Cash cattle trades were steady to lower while wholesale beef prices posted a significant rally.

The first week of the New Year provided little cheer for either cattle feeders or beef packers as both saw increasing per head losses. Ditto for pork producers.