With the U.S. cow herd declining, beef supplies are going down and competition in the marketplace is going up. Steiner Consulting Ag Economist Altin Kalo says the slaughter pace will continue to slow with fewer animals left to market. “Slaughter numbers on the beef side are down about 11 percent year over year.” Kalo says beef producers should receive a bigger piece of the pie with bargaining power swinging in their favor. Packer margins have been on a steady decline for the past two-to-three years.
