The cattle industry is in the rare situation right now where all the pieces of the supply chain are making money, says the president of Cattle Trends.
"We continue to see new highs getting made," notes Anne Wasko. "These are levels that are just unheard of."
She says prices are strong throughout the industry.
"We have record prices from A to Z - cattle prices, wholesale prices, retail prices - the whole shabam, and great margins to go with it. It's pretty rare in this business for all sectors to be in the money," says Wasko.
It helps that pork and chicken prices are also strong, she notes.
"We thought there'd be more pork this year, but the PED virus changed all that. There will be more poultry, but strong beef and pork prices have pulled poultry prices up with them. Nothing stays up here for ever, but we do have a tight supply scenario for a while," says Wasko.
An increase in North American cattle supplies will take several years, she says.
"It's going to be tight for a while. Until we start to see true heifer retention going on and those making their way into the herd, right now most forecasts are suggesting that's going to be awfully slow as it hasn't even started yet," says Wasko. "Even when those decisions are made, you're still three years out, at a minimum, from when it impacts production."
Wasko shared her beef market outlook at the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association convention in Moose Jaw last week.
Source: PortageOnline