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.
“Normal is crazy,” Rodenberger began, then described lighter runs in Oklahoma City due in a large part to muddy conditions and in a small part to the instability of the cattle markets. His advice to producers is that if they are out of wheat and/or water, they should sell cattle. Throughout all of these challenges, cash prices at the sale barns remain stronger than ever.
“These light cattle are just as high as they ever were,” he said. “We’ve seen a little taken off of the bigger feeder cattle, but not what they have taken off the board per se, and I think the board’s gyrating back and forth basically threw off the stock market.”
Rodenberger doesn’t expect it to change until Washington, D.C., provides more stability. In the meantime, he advises producers to utilize LRP as much as possible. He noted that salvage values on killer cattle, bulls included, are outstanding.
This prompted him to encourage producers to cull heavily in favor of betting the genetics of their herd. He said, “You can take a cow calf pair that is ten years old and sell her. She’ll split for $3,000 and go buy you a good, bred young heifer and put her in place of what you culled off.”
He believes that beef prices have reached their upper limit but admitted that he has thought that for three years and beef continues to move.
Runs at Apache last week were similar to a year ago at 1,700, but anticipates a reduction in numbers at all sales as time goes on due to the overall reduction in cattle in the United States.
Rodenberger also invited everyone to a Special Cow Sale at the Apache Livestock Auction on May 3, 11 a.m.
