Beef production forecast for fourth-quarter 2022 is raised by 70 million pounds on higher expected total cattle slaughter, along with slightly heavier carcass weights. Total 2022 beef production is projected at 28.4 billion pounds, an increase of nearly 2% from 2021.

U.S. beef production is poised to end 2022 with another record in total output, as January through October federally inspected slaughtered beef hit 23.25 billion pounds – a 1.9% increase over the same 10-month period from 2021’s record production.

Beef cattle producers continue to face widespread drought and higher operating costs as the holidays approach.

The Senate voted quickly on Thursday to approve a labor agreement that avoids a major railway work stoppage in the midst of the holiday season and fears of more inflationary triggers. The bipartisan measure was approved by a 80-15 vote.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, a division of the Department of Transportation, has denied an application filed by several ag groups for exemptions from certain requirements of the hours-of-service rules for drivers transporting livestock, insects and aquatic animals.

There is never a shortage of world news that affects the cattle industry, and 2022 was no exception. Here are the biggest stories from the past year. 

On Nov. 2, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced over $223 million in grants and loans to support small to midsized meat processing facilities.

A recently published trade report analyzing the effects of American beef imports and exports highlights the strong economic value of the U.S. beef industry’s participation in a global marketplace.

The U.S. beef sector continues to see drought conditions impacting the movement and timing of cattle placement in feedlots, as well as the number of beef cows culled, which will likely continue into early 2023.

The latest USDA Cattle on Feed report pegged the Oct. 1 cattle on feed inventory at 11.45 million head, down 0.9% year over year. This is the first year-over-year decrease in the monthly on-feed inventory since December 2021.