Premiums Built Into Cattle Market Due to Low Numbers Going Forward

Listen to KC Sheperd talk with Bob Rodenberger about the latest in the cattle markets.

KC Sheperd, Farm Director, is back talking with Bob Rodenberger, a partner with Stockman Oklahoma Livestock Marketing, as he gives the latest on the cattle markets. 

The cold weather this week brought in conditions that made it hard to travel, so Rodenberger said there were lower numbers of cattle running through auctions this week, and some auctions did not have a sale. Rodenberger expects next week to return to normal volumes.

“All the little auctions- they didn’t have a sale,” Rodenberger said. “We didn’t have a sale at Apache because of the ice.”

Regarding the recent Cattle Inventory Report issued from USDA, Rodenberger said, going down the central part of the U.S. is where the most cattle have been lost.

“We have got a lot of the premium already built into the market because those cattle that are going to be short are going to be your August, September, October cattle because we are not going to have that spring calf crop,” Rosenberger said. “You are not going to have those fall calves because a lot of those cows went to market.”

Rodenberger said he is very optimistic about the cattle markets going forward.

“If domestic demand stays where it is at, it is tremendous,” Rodenberger said.

Demand has remained strong, Rodenberger said, but he has talked to a few packers who said they have seen less demand for high Choice and Prime cuts because of higher prices.

“They are seeing the select and choice has gone from a 28 dollar spread to like a 10 to 12 dollar spread,” Rodenberger said.

Consumers are going to eat beef no matter what, Rodenberger said, but they just might be purchasing the less expensive option.

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