USDA’s milk production forecast for 2024 reflects a reduced cow inventory for the year and slower growth in milk output per cow. Total production is forecast to be 228.3 billion pounds, which is a 0.75 percent increase from 2023. As of the end of 2023, the dairy cow inventory was 9.36 million head, down from 9.43 million head at the beginning of the year, and on a faster pace of contraction than 2022. The contraction led to a year-long average herd size of 9.395 million head, down from the average in 2022 of 9.402 million head. That contraction is forecast to continue down to 9.35 million head in 2024.
More clarity on the herd size will come at the end of the month with USDA’s Cattle Inventory report which will provide an in...
What You Need to Know Today: Crude oil prices extended their rally today, supported by several developments, including escalating Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabian oil infrastructure and growing concerns about supply disruptions. The Trump administration is reportedly preparing to remove 50 perc...
Key Takeaways: The agricultural trade surplus has become a sizable deficit: the balance swung from a $40.1 billion surplus in 2011 to a $40.7 billion deficit in 2025. Imports kept growing while exports lost momentum: between 2020 and 2025, agricultural imports increased 45 percent, compa...
USDA released its October Cattle on Feed report Friday, showing 11.4 million cattle in feedlots with capacity for 1,000 head or more, slightly below last year. September placements were the lowest for the month since records began in 1996, marking the third consecutive month of placements sett...
Total Red Meat & Poultry September 2026 total red meat and poultry stocks totaled 1.97 billion pounds, down 1.4 percent from August despite typically increasing 0.8 percent during the month, and were 1.5 percent below September 2025 levels. The decline pushed total inventories to a new five...
