Cattle herd shrinks to lowest in almost 40 years; Australian feedlot cattle up 11%
Erica Rosa, an economist at the Livestock Marketing Information Center in Denver, said uncertainty about economic recovery may be keeping ranchers from expanding herds.
“Overall, cow-calf producers continue to reduce herd numbers, rather than expand by retaining heifers,” Rosa said. “Although calf and feeder-cattle prices are higher than 2009, input/production costs still remain high and there is still quite a bit of uncertainty currently and about the future.”