MARKETING...
In the Cattle Markets
Corn yield slashed.
The World Agricultural Outlook Board of USDA released its monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report July 11. The report revealed what most had feared, a much lower per acre yield than trend would suggest. The report currently pegs U.S. corn yield at 146 bushels (bu.) per acre, down 20 bu., or 12.1%, from the June report. After taking into account the slight bump in acres from the June 29 acreage report, which was negated for the most part due to an expected increase in abandoned acres, U.S. production is estimated at 12.970 billion bu.
This lower projected supply is expected to create some rationing in the market, thus projected demand for all categories is lowered from last month. Corn used for feed and residual purposes is currently projected at 4.8 billion bu., down 11.9% from last month, and corn for ethanol is lower by 2.0% at 4.9 billion bu. Collectively, these would result in a carryover of 1.183 billion bu., or 9.3% of total use. Read more.
University of Missouri and Industry Consortium To Announce High-Quality Cattle Strategy
The financial rewards for producing high-quality cattle can't be ignored today. Consumer demand is changing the industry.
The University of Missouri (MU) and a consortium of beef-related companies on Aug. 30 will announce a strategy for the industry to adapt to and profit from these new consumer preferences. This project will describe how cow-calf producers, stockers, feedyards and processors can work together to produce high-demand products. Read more.
CAB Mythbusters
What they thought they knew that just ain't true.
When I hear experts sharing their opinion on the news, I always pause for a moment to think about whether these people really have the credentials for that title — especially when they're commenting on things like food production or medical issues.
How many times have you seen a famous journalist telling the nation how their food is raised, after they visited one farm? Or a celebrity giving suspect diet advice?
It's pretty scary to think about the number of people who take these uninformed accounts as gospel, so I welcome and encourage folks to use their critical thinking skills whenever they read/hear/see anything.
That questioning mind-set does, however, lead some in the cattle industry to think there's no way they could get credible advice from a group that's owned by the leading breed association. See if I can change your mind on this one:
Myth — The CAB Supply Development team just spews Angus propaganda, regardless of the facts. Read more.
Cows Heading to Slaughter
As pastures wither and calf prices stumble, cow culling begins.
Total cattle slaughter for the week ending July 13 was 641,000 head, almost 12% higher than the previous week (holiday week) but still about 4.7% lower than a year ago. Lower fed-cattle slaughter has offset an increase in cow numbers.
As pastures across much of the central United States continue to dry up, more cows are starting to show up. The official USDA data on cow slaughter is reported with a two-week lag, and it continues to show cow slaughter below year-ago levels (see chart). However, estimated cow slaughter for the week ending July 14 is about 3% higher than a year ago. Read more.
The Source
AngusSource® producers explain why the program is valuable to their operation, in their own words.
Word travels quickly around the sale barn.
Did you hear so-and-so got a $4-per-hundredweight (cwt.) premium on the last set of calves? They used some type of age- and source-verification program — AngusSource.®
Little is more disappointing than to hear from a cattleman who would like to enroll calves in AngusSource after the calves have been sold. Too many times, we hear this request and have to turn them down. AngusSource cannot enroll calves once they have left the operation; however, it is the perfect time of year to start planning for that next calf crop.
This past year, I decided to ask AngusSource producers how the program has worked for them and if they would provide me with some words of wisdom to those who have not used AngusSource. Read more.
Analysts See $10 Corn and
Nearly $20 Soybeans as Possible
If current weather patterns continue, $10-per-bushel (bu.) corn and nearly $20-per-bu. soybean futures prices are possible, analysts predicted Tuesday, July 10, during a panel discussion at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) ahead of the July 11 USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report.
This year's combination of heat, drought and timing in key corn and soybean states is setting up a scenario that could create crop losses far worse than those in previous drought years such as 1988, according to AgResource Co. President Dan Basse and Founding Principal of The Hightower Report Terry Roggensack.
Looking at other years, "We haven't seen heat and dry gang up like this before," said Roggensack. Read more.
Drought Shakes the Markets
USDA Economic Research Service offers July 17 "Livestock, Dairy & Poultry Outlook."
This year's lack of adequate rainfall over more than half of the United States has resulted in rapidly deteriorating crop and pasture conditions in the key areas of the Midwest, Southeast, Plains, Southwest and West. This year's drought is more detrimental overall because areas affected by last year's drought have not been able to recover. As a result, corn prices have moved sharply higher and cattle prices have begun to drift lower. The drought will have the largest impacts on prices for corn and feeder cattle through the rest of 2012 and into much of 2013.
While weekly federally inspected beef cow slaughter has been generally below last year's high levels, it has picked up recently due to drought-induced concerns over standing and harvested forage supplies for the remainder of this summer through the coming winter. Read more.
Angus Calendar
To view the Angus Calendar, a complete list of Angus sales, click here.