US Cattle Sector Returns to Expansion

Cattle markets in the United States look ‘rosy’ and are transitioning from liquidation to expansion.

Robust domestic and global beef demand are reasons to be cheerful, according to a Cattlefax senior analyst, Kevin Good told the Cattle Industry Summer Conference in Denver last week.

Describing the tight beef supplies and challenges to rival proteins as a ‘perfect storm’, Mr Good underlined the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhoea virus and hatchability and genetics issues in poultry for limiting pork and chicken supplies, meaning beef values are not far out of line.

Corn prices are also helping, he added, range conditions are at their third best for 20 years and exports are increasing.

But he cautioned that the next three years were open to drought conditions, with much of the industry in a 20-year drought.

“We are living in extraordinary times and prices are going to be continually strong over the next couple of years.” However, he added: “It’s easy to be optimistic today, but markets don’t go up forever.”

The environmental impacts of lamb production in the United Kingdom were discussed in The Big Debate at the 2014 Sheep Event at the Three Counties Showground in Malvern last week.

Among the key messages were that upland sheep farmers in the UK need to take the lead and work closely with environmental groups and authorities to ensure the maintenance of biodiversity and the ecology of the landscape.

There also needs to be more decisions about the preservation of local ecology taken at a local level to ensure that actions taken in the name of preservation and conservation fit the environment.

At the same event, the National Farmers Union and National Sheep Association unveiled a joint vision for UK lamb industry.

Attendees heard that lamb exports are healthy - accounting for more than one-third of production - and growing but much more consumer focus is needed to improve the dwindling domestic market.

The Vision for British Lamb Production calls for a greater uptake of tools throughout the supply chain to measure efficiency and identify areas that require focus.

A new consumer survey by Purdue University shows many US consumers gain knowledge of livestock and poultry welfare from animal rights organisations. A significant number of respondents reported they had reduced their pork purchases by an average of 56 per cent following recent media attention focusing on animal care practices used in the US swine industry.

The multistate outbreak of multidrug-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg infections linked to Foster Farms' brand chicken in the US appears to be over.