The cattle industry, like everyone else, is more than ready to move past 2020 and into a new year. While the industry will start the year with a new slate, there are numerous factors in place that will shape markets for, at least, the first few months of 2021. Cattle markets face a mix of opportunities and challenges as the new year begins.

On Dec. 18, the USDA Cattle on Feed report was released. The trade expectations told a consistent story of lower placements and marketings from a year ago.

Much of 2020 has been preoccupied with daily and weekly slaughter numbers, carcass weights and boxed beef prices, along with monthly cattle-on-feed dynamics. The intertemporal volatility through the year adds to the challenge of assessing what, exactly, is the situation regarding the cattle cycle and longer-term herd dynamics.

Despite the challenges facing the industry at the beginning of the third quarter, the beef industry has processed more fed cattle in third-quarter 2020 than the previous year.

U.S. global meat protein exports have continued to evolve in 2020. Some of the changes this year reflect ongoing trends in global meat markets, but the COVID-19 pandemic has also affected protein trade.

President-elect Joe Biden announced Dec. 10 that Tom Vilsack will return to the helm of the USDA.

Having enough feed for your herd is a top concern for most producers. Tips and tricks to help stretch grazing days before resorting to feeding hay abound. One option that is often underutilized by both farmers and ranchers is grazing crop residue. 

Feed grain and oilseed prices have undergone some dramatic changes over the past couple of months. These changes are indicative of changes to underlying fundamentals in those markets and will impact the value of feeder cattle and calf prices well into next year. It is worth examining the changes to crop market conditions and thinking about possible prices.

After a protracted election period, The Associated Press and other news agencies called the 2020 presidential election in former Vice President Joe Biden’s favor on Nov. 7, 2020, after Biden scored crucial wins in Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin and finally Pennsylvania.