- Video shows cattle producers in Saline County finishing up their 2025 calving season
- Cattle producers are seeing high market prices, but expensive inputs mean those prices aren't translating into profits
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
For cattlemen like my brother Eric there aren’t many days off especially during calving season.
Whether it’s feeding in the morning or pulling calves in the afternoon, there is always something to do.
“We have 190 head of red Angus Heifers that were AI’d in this group. It creates a little tighter calving window. But we have had good weather so we are down to about 40 or 45 head. Things are going well,” said Eric Whitney, a cattle producer in Saline County.
Farmers have had a tough few years when it comes to commodity prices but the market price for cattle is looking better than ever.
Inventory was down in 2024 with the USDA reporting the total number of beef cows in the country was at it lowest in 70 years but this year Eric’s heard has been making up ground.
“We do Heifer pairs. They are all made to be mommas and good ones and thrifty at that,” said Whitney.
With low inventory and high demand prices are rising but record prices are not translating into record profits.
“On the face that sounds great right? However, our industry has seen a sharp escalation in most all input costs,” said Jeff Stolle, Vice President of Marketing for the Nebraska Cattlemen.
There is a some good news though for the cattle markets.
Unlike our corn and soybean farmers Cattlemen haven’t seen the same whiplash in market demand coming from Trump’s ongoing trade war.
But to is hard to say if that will last.
“In all honesty Alex, it’s like the news changes very two hours,” said Stolle.
“Hopefully it will all shake down and work out good in the end but year its something that everybody has thought about,”said Whitney.
Stolle says the status quo for cattle will likely stay the same for some time to come.
It will take years for the nation’s herd to build back up and Stolle says until that happens demand will continue to outweigh supply.
For Eric, that means navigating another year of high market prices and slim margins.
But this year’s calving season has been on of his most successful in recent years and he is hoping that good luck will translate into higher profits.
“In our instance pairs are bringing some of the best they ever have. As to the longevity of how long that will last, well as a cattle producer im hoping it’s a long time,” said Eric.
