The emergency stash 😂

Did you see a meme that made you laugh this week? DM @cattleusa.media on Instagram to share with the community!

+ follow @cattleusa.media & help us get to 2,000 followers!

Close your mouth, you're catching flies

Excuse me while I pick up my jaw off the floor… and yours. What a rally. $257 on cash fed cattle by Tuesday and $258 by Wednesday. Who would’ve thought packer resistance passed $250 since February would’ve led to this.. and only two days into the week?! A good week to reflect on, an even better one to protect on!!

Lost a little steam coming into Friday, but that is to be expected already having traded close to 70,000 head on a cash basis through Wednesday. Exceptional slaughter levels. Beef demands alive and well despite some pressure points from discretionary spending. Sale barns and feeder cattle sales have been mind blowing all week.

Next week also brings some optimism with the packers slaughtering cattle as quick as they can get them. This market has seen its fair share of headwind for months and manage to press on regardless. Plus, the Farm Bill passed - another win for Ag. Question everyone’s asking now.. what will be the thing to make it, or break it?

For some of us it’s felt like summer since Feb but siri told me this morning we are actually 51 days away from the official start of summer. Which means most of us are ideally anywhere between 15-30 days away, more or less, from turning cattle out to summer pasture. Maybe longer if you’re in drought country along with the other 60% of the U.S. Depending on how much you trust your weatherman or app, they’re calling for some showers for the southern plains over the weekend, and I sure hope that holds water.

My brother hauls and brokers a lot of hay, and if his phone had a hook, it would’ve rung off by 11am this morning. I may be in my 20s, but yes, I understand that expression. People are getting desperate for hay. Everybody that did have some either sold it or kept it anticipating drought. And those that do have hay, won’t dare get rid of it now. Sounds like bankers have also started cracking down.

Keep in mind, with every market rally, there was a lot of tough decisions behind it. It took years of liquidation to get us to these levels for a lot of the same reasons we’re facing today. I’d love to give you a long-term outlook but that simply isn’t a one size fit all answer. However, I will say, retention levels are shockingly strong given the circumstances and I strongly hope that is sustainable going forward.

Most of the wheat around NW KS has already headed out at a foot tall, if that, and the outlook on corn is anybody's guess. I’ll let you put the puzzle pieces together on that one. The other day, the radar showed a storm the size of Texas parked right over us and we barely got a sprinkle. However, we have a neighbor down the road who has a huge pond and through all the generations him and his family have lived here, It’s never went dry and right now it is damn close. Matter of fact, the other day I caught him siphoning out some water. Let that be your optimism for the next 14 days. Have a good evening and we sure hope to see you all at King of the Ring in Dodge City this Saturday!

- Beef:

-Fat cattle kill at 90,000 vs 93,000 a week ago and 89,843 a year ago

-Choice boxes down 0.41 to $389.11 and select down 1.12 to $387.05 for a spread of 2.06 on 57 loads

-CME feeder index(Feeder LRP Settlement) for 4/30 came in at $374.03

-Fed Cattle LRP’s ending last week settled at $246.19

- Pork:

-Hog kill at 461,000 vs 485,000 a week ago and 476,793 a year ago.

-Afternoon Pork reported up 0.83 at $97.59 on 314.04 loads

-CME lean hog index on 4/29 reported at 91.41

-CME pork cutout index on 4/30 reported at 98.22

-LRP’s ending 5/1 settled at approximately $91.30

1”-3” of rain will occur from TX to GA, mostly today. 1”-3” of rain is possible from far eastern KS to OH. All other grain areas will see trace-1”. Keep in mind May and June are on average the wettest times of year. So, 1”-3” of rain over 2 weeks in the Plains/Midwest is a bit below average in the main belt as average May rainfall is 4”-6”.

May the Fourth be with you!