USDA’s first Cattle on Feed Report for 2025 shows the trend of a shrinking cattle inventory continues from 2024. Rusty Halvorson has the story.
USDA’s first Cattle on Feed Report for the year shows the nation’s cattle inventory continues to be tight. Here’s USDA livestock economist Mike McConnell.
“The major story that continues when it comes to cattle on feed is that placement still remains strong, relatively speaking, even though they’re down slightly from a year ago. This coming on the tails of a pretty strong run of placements in the third and fourth quarters.”
USDA says 11.8 million head of cattle were on-feed as of January 1st. That’s a one percent decline from the previous year. December placements were down 3 percent from 2024. However.
“There’s still robust demand for cattle and for beef as exhibited by the 1% increase in marketing’s during the month of September. That’s been reflected as well in the price of fed cattle which has remained strong, and in fact has crossed over the $200 per hundredweight mark in the month of January looking at the five-area fed steer price.”
Another continuing trend is lower year-over-year heifer placements for the second consecutive quarter.
“Heifers and heifer calves accounted for about 39% of feedlot inventories. This is down slightly from where it was last year, although it’s still relatively speaking on the higher end of historical north, but it has been continuing a trend that at least we’ve seen in the two quarterly reports.”
McConnell says, “That may be signaling – to some degree – that fact that perhaps cow-calf producers are retaining their female animals for breeding rather than marketing their heifers.”
According to the USDA report, cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the U.S. for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.8 million head on January 1, 2025. The inventory was 1 percent below January 1, 2024. The inventory included 7.25 million steers and steer calves, up 1 percent from the previous year. This group accounted for 61 percent of the total inventory. Heifers and heifer calves accounted for 4.58 million head, down 3 percent from 2024.
Placements in feedlots during December totaled 1.64 million head, 3 percent below 2023. Net placements were 1.58 million head. During December, placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 395,000 head, 600-699 pounds were 380,000 head, 700-799 pounds were 375,000 head, 800-899 pounds were 287,000 head, 900-999 pounds were 115,000 head, and 1,000 pounds and greater were 90,000 head.
Marketing’s of fed cattle during December totaled 1.74 million head, 1 percent above 2023.