Due to the government shutdown, the October Cattle on Feed report was not released along with many other data reports used to make informed assumptions about what is going on in the industry. A breakdown of heifers and steers on feed is released every quarter in the Cattle on Feed report. This breakdown was especially anticipated this October to gather a sense of effort towards heifer retention. When the report was not released in addition to numerous announcements concerning trade and re-opening the border, markets responded negatively to the lack of data. Before the shutdown ended, the November Cattle on Feed report was scheduled to be released on November 21st. Since the government is now open, more market reports and data will be released and will hopefully provide a little more certainty in this highly volatile market. This article specifically discusses the latest cattle on feed data.
Heifers on Feed
While not a quarterly report, the November Cattle on Feed report provided the steer-heifer breakdown as of October 1. The percentage of heifers on feed has not changed since July, remaining at 38.1% of all cattle on feed. This indicates little if any efforts have been made towards heifer retention since summer/early fall. The January report will provide an updated percentage and will capture even more of the fall-run placements of heifers (October-December).
On Feed Now & Later
Total placements were down 6% in September and 10% in October, with marketings also down 8% in October, all within pre-report estimates. The total number of cattle on feed as of October 1 was 11.7 million head, a 2.2% decline year-over-year. The November Cattle on Feed report reiterated the fact that cattle supplies are tight and will continue to be tight when we do start retaining heifers rather than feeding them.
Questions, contact Hannah at h.baker@ufl.edu
See this update and other helpful resources online at https://rcrec-ona.ifas.ufl.edu/about/directory/staff/hannah-baker/
Written November 2025
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