The U.S. Department of Agriculture published an assessment report conducted by Kansas State University to assess market information provided by the Cattle Contracts Library Pilot Program.

The assessment report — available on the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service Cattle Contracts Library Pilot Program webpage — also identifies probable impacts of the CCL on the fed cattle market and provides recommendations that aid in fed cattle market transparency.

USDA is currently reviewing the findings and recommendations included in the assessment report.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 (Pub. L. 117-103, March 15, 2022) directed AMS to establish a Cattle Contracts Library Pilot Program to increase market transparency for cattle producers. The library makes it clear what terms contracts have in common and their key differences and includes relevant volume numbers to provide context for those terms. AMS published the final rule implementing the pilot in the Federal Register Dec. 7, 2022, with an effective date of Jan. 6, 2023. Public access to the pilot began Jan. 31, 2023.

Source: USDA