US beef herd at 50-year low
With 29.4 million beef cows recorded as of July 1, US farmers are raising the fewest beef cows since 1971, as shown by US government data released on July 21 and reported by Reuters.
Recording a 2.6% decrease on previous years figures, the biannual report said it was the smallest herd for the date since records began being taken, 52 years ago and represented a fifth year of reducing numbers.
With tighter supplies, the costs for meatpackers such as Tyson Foods, Cargill and JBS SA’s have risen but hope’s that herd rebuilding, a year long process, will bring some respite to the rising prices.
Due to drought conditions, ranchers have progressively sent cattle to slaughter as pasture available for grazing has reduced.
Photo by James Coleman on Unsplash
