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Tighter cattle supplies are providing a bump in prices

A field representative with a local livestock auction says tighter cattle supplies are providing much-needed support to prices.

Tim Clifton, with the MO-KAN Livestock Market, which is located a little over an hour from Kansas City, says this is the first positive Cattle on Feed report in months.  “Even the lighter-weight cattle that have been struggling the past month,” he says.  “Because it’s October and we always see health issues in those new-crop bawling calves, and they always take a hit this time of year.  Those cattle were $5 to $10 higher in spots.”

He tells Brownfield demand was strong for all weight classes of cattle, which is a change from recent weeks.  “The last month has been more of struggle to get more of these lighter-weight cattle market,” he says. “We’ve seen more demand for those calves as that market was stronger and I think we’ll see more of that going forward.”

Clifton says as the drought intensified across the region, many sale barns started seeing increased offerings.  “A lot of producers are getting rid of any kind of kill-cattle they can get rid of right now,” he says.  “I’ve seen some producers who typically wean their calves and make yearlings out of them, they are selling them right off the cow this year because they don’t have the hay to background them and wean them out 45 to 60 days.”

Widespread rains fell across much of Missouri this past week, and while it helped to replenish soil moisture, Clifton says it likely did nothing to improve the feed situation for producers.