News

Continued strong movement of heifers into feedlots

One of the takeaways from last week’s cattle-on-feed report is the continued higher-than-normal percentage of heifers going into feedlots.

The percentage of heifers and heifer calves in feedlots on October 1st was up 11 percent from one year ago. Oklahoma State University Extension livestock marketing specialist Derrell Peel says that indicates heifer retention is “definitely slowing down”.

“As it stands right now, it looks like we’re approaching a peak—maybe a plateau, really—in these cow herd numbers,” he says.

But Peel says that doesn’t mean the industry is entering a long liquidation phase.

“It’s not necessary that we have to go into a liquidation. We really haven’t overdone it too much this time,” he says. “On the other hand, going forward, if we were to see continued strong domestic demand and maybe some growth in these export markets, we could actually pick up and expand a little bit more in a year or two down the road.”

AUDIO: Derrell Peel