Looking for signs of growth in the cattle herd

The USDA releases its latest Cattle on Feed numbers on Friday.

Livestock economist Scott Brown says there are still no clear signs to indicate growth in the U.S. cattle herd. “I can anecdotally find folks who will say no growth to folks that are saying, yeah, there’s growth happening in places,” he says.

He tells Brownfield feedyards have remained relatively full, despite a smaller herd, but the placement numbers in Friday’s report matter. “I think we’re getting a good indication of fall runs now starting to happen that will give us a good indication of whether we’re going to be even tighter in beef supplies as we get into 2025,” he says.

And, Brown says, “That piece is really the only clue we’re going to get since we haven’t had the traditional mid-year cow report.”