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Cattle country still desperately needs rain
While drought conditions have improved across the country, a livestock economist says much of cattle country remains desperate for rain.
University of Missouri’s Scott Brown says, “There’s still a number of places where cattle are abundant that we don’t have enough rainfall relative to what’s needed for pasture growth.”
He says the weather will play a role in the future U.S. cattle herd. “If we get timely rains, I think we can continue to see some interest in parts of the country of expanding,” he says.
And if rains miss cattle country, he tells Brownfield, “It’s going to get drier and it’s going to be hard to have enough grass, especially given where hay prices have been of late to get a lot of growth in terms of beef cow inventory.”
According to the latest Drought Monitor, released last Thursday, Nebraska, Kansas, western Oklahoma and parts of Texas remain in extreme or exceptional drought, the two most severe drought categories.
Tags: Ag Weather, cattle herd, Cattle/Beef, Drought, Hay, hay production, Livestock, USDA
Add parts of Iowa to that Extreme drought list!