Friday’s June Word Agriculture Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report raised its forecast for total red meat and poultry production slightly over May’s forecast. Broiler production was revised down, while beef and pork were revised up to offset the smaller broiler production.
The beef production forecast is based on the rate of slaughter, which is up for fed cattle and for cull cows. Slaughter weights have followed seasonal patterns, but since April have dropped faster than the five-year average.
For pork, production was raised based on the pace of Q2 slaughter. The Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report will be released in a couple of weeks (June 29) and will provide a clearer picture on hog production for the end of the year...
What You Need to Know Today: Commodities were mostly lower across the board today after yesterday’s Federal Reserve meeting hinted at a potential interest rate hike later in 2026. The dollar index reached its highest level in over a year, and a strong dollar makes U.S. agricultural expor...
Tomorrow is the Juneteenth federal holiday, and the USDA, along with the rest of the federal government and the CME, will be closed, so the monthly Cattle on Feed report was released a day early. The total number of cattle on feed in feedlots with 1,000 head or more capacity on 1 June amounted...
