Cattle prices

myersfarm · #1 02/24/12, 08:10 AM

Did anybody you know or read about predicte the high prices of cattle THIS SOON THIS YEAR

I though the dairy would need a few more years to come back but never thought BEEF cattle would be HIGHER THAN I could ever remember

when I had 120 head angus moma cows I kept track of the 500 pounders When I bought my farm the 500 pounders brought $.50 a pound I thought it was good when the prices reached $1.39 this is what they brought this week here 500-600 lbs 177.00-197.00;

http://www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/jc_ls154.txt

BarbadosSheep · #2 02/24/12, 11:08 AM

With last year's hay shortages, many cattle were sent to slaughter early, caausing meat shortages this year.

ksfarmer · #3 02/24/12, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by myersfarm

.................................................. .....when I had 120 head angus moma cows I kept track of the 500 pounders When I bought my farm the 500 pounders brought $.50 a pound I thought it was good when the prices reached $1.39 this is what they brought this week here 500-600 lbs 177.00-197.00;

http://www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/jc_ls154.txt

I'm older, I remember when I first started I sold 500-600 lb hereford steers for $0.36 a pound. Now that I've retired and sold all my cows, a couple of years ago, guess what!!

Of course, you've got to look at what pasture is selling or renting for, and feed costs too.

haypoint · #4 02/24/12, 12:30 PM

There have been a lot of dairy cows going to Turkey and beef cattle going to Russia. The ship Ocean Drover can haul 3000 at a time.
The export of meat is picking up, partly due to USDA assurances that we don't have any Mad Cow and partly because China is able to afford more meat protein.

Mironsfarm · #5 02/24/12, 12:32 PM

i went to the cow sale 2 weeks ago 500 and under were bring 2.25 and over 500 was bringing 1.58 now bottle calf from the dairy they want 150 to 200 bucks !

collegeboundgal · #6 02/24/12, 02:41 PM

went to a seminar and they explained it. due to the drought and the price of hay, a lot of cows and heifers went to slaughter, on top of the feeder steers. so, thats a lot of female cattle that wont be producing calves. smaller population of cattle, bigger price the customer has to pay. and feedlots dont make any money with empty lots... cattle prices will only rise for the next few years. most folks are keeping any and all heifers they can due to the price of cattle. (on craigslist around here, cows age 2-6yrs old in the 2-3 period are bringing 1200-1500 a head) so farmers are finding it hard to even afford to buy replacements.

Callieslamb · #7 02/24/12, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mironsfarm

i went to the cow sale 2 weeks ago 500 and under were bring 2.25 and over 500 was bringing 1.58 now bottle calf from the dairy they want 150 to 200 bucks !

shhhhhh.....I picked up 4 jerseys this month for $10 apiece. I was hoping I'd be able to sell a couple of them this summer.

Mironsfarm · #8 02/24/12, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Callieslamb

shhhhhh.....I picked up 4 jerseys this month for $10 apiece. I was hoping I'd be able to sell a couple of them this summer.

10 bucks wow! i would buy all they had if could i raise mine on goat milk so it dont cost to much to feed them out! maybe i need to get some in july when i go up to michagen and haul them back to nc

rancher1913 · #9 02/24/12, 07:55 PM

i hope and pray its not another "bubble". 6 and 8 year olds sold at a dispersal sale for 1.25 the other day---1400 pound cow brought almost 1800 and with maybe 6 or 10 calfs left in them its going to be hard to breakeven.

Tad · #10 02/25/12, 04:58 AM

We are sure enjoying the cull cow prices. We set two 10 year-old + holstien cows, I don't remember what the weights were but we got better than $1500. The price was somewhere in the $.60 range. We sent a younger one that wouldn't breed last fall she was good and fat she brought over a grand by herself.

sammyd · #11 02/25/12, 07:12 AM

cattle numbers were low enough last year to start pushing prices up, couple that with the sell off due to lack of feed in certain areas and cattle prices will be up for a while IMO.

Lazy J · #12 02/25/12, 08:05 AM

There are several factors that have worked together to push the cattle prices to record high levels. First is that we have less cows. This is due to many factors: High corn turning pasture into cropland, older farmers quitting beef, drought in the SW. Secondly, the US had the largest year ever for beef exports, the world wants US beef and are willing to pay for it, especially Asian countries. Finally, high feedstuff prices have pushed prices higher.

I have talked with several livestock economists that feel these high beef prices will be with us for three to five years.

Jim

collegeboundgal · #13 02/25/12, 04:34 PM

yeah, that was another thing, japan's income level has risen enough that more people over there are able to buy beef so we were exporting A LOT to them. lets hope something like "mad cow" dosent rear its ugly head right now and put an end to most, if not all export. it would break the backs of a lot of ranchers barely holding on right now in the SW drought area. what with the price their paying for hay and water... man I feel bad for them folks...

Judy in IN · #14 02/25/12, 07:56 PM

I'm not seeing those high prices. I put 3 Holstein calves up for sale on CL at $1.25 lb. Have had NO responses. I put them on another site, and the questions were all: how much do they weigh? I weighed them 367#, 347# and 199#. That was the death knell.

I thought they would be great for 4H calves, since they are handled twice a day and are dog-tame.

KIT.S · #15 02/25/12, 11:32 PM

2 years ago near us, Holstein day-old bulls were going for $5 on CL. Last July I paid a whopping $60 for our two. I figured it was summer, and the demand was higher than in the spring. Now, the same place that had been selling for $5 are getting $80 each, and warning CL buyers that they're going to go higher as the weather gets better. I was going to get another 2, as the current ones are going in the freezer, but I think it's cheaper to wait until they're 500 pounds and get them for $250 (also on CL) and I don't have to pay for milk replacer or go out in the dark and the rain to feed them.

Is it just me, or do you also notice when you start a new project, get everything together and make it work, all of a sudden everyone else is doing the same thing and it's a lot more expensive??
Kit

myersfarm · #16 02/25/12, 11:57 PM

they're 500 pounds and get them for $250 (also on CL)

I see ads like that also but if you call IN MY AREA the guy sold them 2 minutes after the ad was posted and picked up in hour...not saying you can not get luck but those people will relize they can get more next time

sammyd · #17 02/26/12, 01:47 AM

if you find em for 50 cent a pound get every single one you can...

Tad · #18 02/26/12, 04:57 AM

The price of beef must be looking better than dairy long term. We can get more $ out of a 3 day old bull calf than we can a hiefer right now. Haven't sent calves in two weeks maybe but the last ones we sent the bulls brought $1.25 and the hiefers about $1/pound.