While nearly every commodity market was down this past year, cattle have been the one exception. The record cattle markets are the Red River Farm Network’s #4 agriculture story of the year. “In the cattle business, the supply/demand fundamentals are either all good or all bad and right now, they’re all good,” said Tim Petry, livestock economist, NDSU Extension. Petry made those comments when record prices were seen this past summer. The U.S. cattle herd is at its lowest level in 70 years. Markets remained strong for much of the year, but took a hit on October 18th after President Trump put consumer beef prices under the microscope. “We are working on beef and I think we have a deal on beef that will bring the price of beef down,” said Trump. “Beef is the one product that is a little higher than we want it, maybe, higher than we want it and that’s going to be coming down.” Trump eventually directed the Justice Department to investigate the ‘big three’ meatpackers. Volatility was the story in the fourth quarter, and feeder calf values finally returned to levels seen before Trump’s comments in mid-December.
