Herd Reductions

Herd Reductions

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
January cattle inventory shows biggest herd contraction in 6 years. The USDA released its biannual U.S. cattle inventory report showing U.S. cattle totals as of Jan. 1. The report provides inventory data for the nation’s cattle herd, including estimates of the number of breeding animals for beef and milk production, as well as the number of heifers being held for breeding herd replacement. This important report identifies beef and milk cow herd trends, helping the cattle industry evaluate the amount of product moving to market.

Cattle Inventory

As of Jan. 1, all cattle and calves in the U.S. totaled 94.413 million head, slightly below the 94.804 million head reported for Jan. 1, 2019. This marks the first year-over-year January decline in cattle numbers since 2014, the beginning of the current cattle cycle. From 2014 to 2020 the herd grew by more than 6.5 million head, an increase of approximately 7.4%. Higher prices in previous years largely drove the expansion of the herd. However, as these prices have come back down, the expansion of the herd has appeared to level off. Moving forward, some in the industry are calling for a more moderated herd decline in the next phase of this cycle than has been seen in previous cycles.

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