Released February 1, 2010
URBANA, Ill. – The cattle industry should be on the mend in 2010, says Purdue University Extension economist Chris Hurt. Available supplies of beef will drop in the United States as production declines and exports increase. "Demand will be better at home as the U.S. economy continues to climb back from the depths of the recession," he said.
The beef herd continues to drop slowly. Beef cow numbers on January 1 were estimated at 31.4 million head, down another 1 percent from last year. Over the past four years, the beef cow herd has dropped 5 percent. Dairy cow numbers were down 3 percent in 2009 as herd reductions resulted from large financial losses.
--article continued on University of Illinois Extension news
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