No segment of the cattle industry has been spared from the uncertainty and turmoil driven by COVID-19. However, the dynamics for the slaughter cow market have been a little different than those for the live cattle coming from feedlots that have garnered the most discussion due to plant disruptions.

In first-quarter 2020, beef production reached record levels on the largest number of cattle slaughtered for the quarter since 2002 and the heaviest dressed weights since 2016.

Although raising cattle may be the focal point of every ranching operation, for most ranchers, there comes a time when it is necessary to put away the saddle and get out the swather and baler. 

The coronavirus has wreaked havoc on the ag industry – disrupting supply chains, closing down critical processing plants and causing ag commodity prices to take a nosedive.

Economic growth projections for the U.S. and the world have been revised downward due to the impacts of COVID-19, with many global growth projections having contractions of nearly 3%.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) ordered the country’s four largest meat-packing companies to provide information as part of an ongoing probe of possible antitrust violations, according to a report from Bloomberg.

Price transparency has been a hotly debated topic in the beef industry for years. With the recent market volatility due to the spread of COVID-19, the disparity between cattle prices and beef prices has been garnering the attention of lawmakers, resulting in an investigation into the cattle markets. 

Barring a major setback, it appears that beef markets are moving past the worst of the disruptions that have caused upheaval is recent weeks.