Despite high beef prices, a smaller dairy herd and unprecedented high prices for dairy cow replacements have now impacted cull cow slaughter rates for over a full year.
Based on latest USDA monthly Livestock Slaughter data released on March 19, the number of dairy cull cows marketed through U.S. slaughter plants in February 2026 was estimated at 237,300. While down 9,500 from January, it was 20,300 more than February 2025.
February 2025 had 24 non-holiday weekdays and Saturdays while February 2026 also had 24 days. Slaughter averaged 9,900 head per business day this year, up 900 head from a year earlier.
Weekly slaughter toward the end of 2025 reversed a long-term trend where weekly dairy cow slaughter had trailed year-earlier levels with a total decline of nearly 556,100 head. However, in the weeks since September 2025, it has increased 62,815 head from the same period a year earlier.
The USDA estimated there were 9.615 million dairy cows in U.S. herds in February 2026, up 15,000 from the January estimate and putting the February culling rate at about 2.5% of the herd. Based on the monthly data, year-to-date (January-February) dairy cull cow slaughter now stands at about 484,100 head, up 19,300 from the same period a year ago.
Read: Milk production climbs as dairy herd expands in February USDA estimate
Heaviest dairy cow culling during January occurred in the Upper Midwest (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin) at 59,500 head. That was followed in the Southwest (Arizona, California, Hawaii and Nevada) at 49,400 head.
Other monthly regional totals were estimated at 33,400 head in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Virginia; 32,200 head in Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas; and 30,100 head in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington.
Primary data for the USDA’s Livestock Slaughter report is obtained from reports from about 1,100 federally inspected plants and nearly 1,825 state-inspected or custom-exempt slaughter plants.
Read also: Dairy replacement cow prices fall back to last spring
