As the calendar turned the page to a new year, USDA reported the number of beef cows dropped by 1% last year, the sixth straight year of decline since the peak in 2019. All cattle on feed also slipped 1% in 2024. Markets have responded accordingly to the tighter inventory as cattle feeders look to fill pens.
Dairy-beef calf prices from across the country have continued to skyrocket, reaching historical highs. East to west prices in late March for dairy-beef cross bull calves reported by USDA and regional auction markets include:
The National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB) 2024 report was released on March 4, giving strong indications for the proportion of beef cross or dairy replacement calves to be born in the first half of 2025.
The report indicated that domestic beef units sold in the U.S. rose by 304,000 units overall, with beef units used on dairies hitting only 14,000 units over 2023. The total beef units sold in the U.S. totaled 9.7 million units, with 7.9 million going into dairy herds and 1.8 million used in beef herds. Additionally, sexed dairy units jumped by 1.5 million, or 18%, to reach just over 9.9 of the 16 million dairy units used in the USA. Sexed dairy semen has grown steadily and represents 61% of the dairy units used by U.S. dairy producers, growing 7% over 2023. Conventional units declined by 833,000 units.
Overall, NAAB data of beef sales into beef herds saw a bump in 2024, and dairies focused on creating replacement heifers through the use of sexed semen. With the combination of record-low cattle inventories and no clear signs of a significant jump in the volume of feeder calves hitting the markets, dairy-beef calf prices do not appear to see softening in the near term.
