USA - Heavier beef carcass weights
08 Aug 2012
The U.S. cow herd is definitely shrinking; but the correlated reduction in beef output is not a one-to-one ratio, according to livestock analysts in the CME Group’s Daily Livestock Report.
The analysts note that U.S. cattle slaughter has stayed in a range of 32.7 to 33.9 million head for the past 6 years but is set to fall below the bottom of that range by declining about 4.3 percent this year.
However, while cattle slaughter has declined, annual beef production is still near the same level, which the analysts attribute to more beef per animal, a function of both higher slaughter weights and higher carcass yields.
Source: Argentine Beef Packers S.A.
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