Farm Director KC Sheperd is back talking with Bob Rodenberger, a Stockman Oklahoma Livestock Marketing partner, as he gives the latest on the cattle markets.
“It’s a good market, fundamentally; we shouldn’t see any hiccups, and there is a lot of potential to keep making money on your home-raised calves if you are one of them that makes yearlings out of them or if you have been buying calves to carry over to grass,” Rodenberger detailed. “There is still a good margin for these people to make money, but you’ve got to have some sort of risk protection. I keep harping that over and over.”
He emphasized how margin protection won’t prevent producers from making more money when the calves are sold but guarantees what they are worth now.
He noted how good the Apache sale was this week with the pens full of local cattle but anticipates lessening numbers as time goes on. With beef demand at an all time high, reduced cattle numbers will maintain strong markets.
“Fifty percent of our beef demand and consumption is hamburger,” Rodenberger said. “We don’t have enough cow kill, so they are having to grind a bigger percentage of the carcass, and that is what has maintained a good part of the market for what fat cattle are worth.”
While Rodenberger has long anticipated consumers balking at beef prices, this has yet to happen. His biggest fear about the cattle markets is what he calls the “black swan effect,” which is set off by changing political or outside investor activities.
Higher carcass weights have thus far enabled the industry to keep up with beef demand, but cattle can only grow so big.
