Return of drought in the US delays recovery of cattle herds

Published Nov 13, 2024

Tridge summary

Drought conditions in U.S. cattle-producing areas are delaying expansion plans for ranchers and putting pressure on meat processors like Tyson Foods due to tight cattle supplies and high meat prices. The drought, worsening over the past two months, has reduced pasture lands and forced more animals to be sent to slaughter, resulting in the smallest U.S. herd in seven decades. This situation is causing an increase in livestock costs, which is expected to continue hurting meat processors and leading to reduced herd expansion in the future. The early delivery of heifers and young cattle to feedlots is also expected to result in distorted beef production in 2025.

Disclaimer: The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

The return of drought in U.S. cattle-producing areas is delaying ranchers’ plans to expand production after the country’s herd shrank to its lowest level in seven decades, farmers and analysts said. Tight cattle supplies are putting pressure on meat processors, including Tyson Foods, which reports quarterly earnings on Tuesday, and on consumers facing high meat prices. Beef producers had hoped rains would encourage farmers to begin rebuilding their herds in 2024, after years of drought scorched grasslands and forced more animals to be sent to slaughter. Instead, the drought has worsened in the past two months, in a new blow to processors who must pay to buy limited cattle supplies. In the United States, 62% of cattle were in areas suffering from drought at the end of October, the highest rate since December 2022, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. More than half the herd remained in drought zones last week after rains lashed the Plains, down from less than 20 percent for most ...

Source: Elagro