By Kay Ledbetter
Dairy producers are facing a decline in milk prices but beef prices are up and providing added revenue to help them weather the storm, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service dairy specialists.
The beef-on-dairy breeding program is as much or more of their business as the milk marketing, said AgriLife Extension dairy specialists Jennifer Spencer, Ph.D., assistant professor, Stephenville, and Juan Piñeiro, DVM, Ph.D., associate professor, Canyon, both in the Texas A&M Department of Animal Science.
“Today, dairies are depending more on calf prices, where beef-on-dairy calves have gone from $600 per calf in 2024 to as high as $1,500 per calf for Holstein/Angus cross calves now,” Piñeiro said.
He said recent data from CattleFax indicated 3.22 million beef-on-dairy animals were sold in 2024, where 10 years previously, there were only 50,000 head sold. This is also helping the dairy industry fill supply gaps within the beef industry amid historically tight cattle supplies.
In the marketplace
The Southwest Marketing Area Market Administrator’s Jan. 13 report showed Texas milk production increased by 1.2 billion pounds from 2024, increasing from 17 billion pounds in 2024 to 18.2 billion pounds in 2025.
Spencer and Piñeiro said this is primarily due to the increased number of dairy cows in the state, as well as improved genetics, nutrition and practices that promote cow comfort.
Source : tamu.edu