The Cattle Business Weekly

The National Western announced the inaugural class of Ranches of the West, a new heritage award recognizing ranches whose leadership and contributions have shaped the American beef industry and Western way of life.  The 10 honorees will be formally inducted as part of an expanded National Western Stock Show Cattlemen’s Week, Jan. 13-18. An exhibit featuring the honorees will be on display at National Western’s premier event venue, The Legacy. The exhibit will be on display inside the Wold Heritage Center at The Legacy through the fall. The 10 ranches to be honored are: Colorado  – Bledsoe Ranch, Silver Spur...

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  The latest USDA Cattle on Feed shows the September feedlot inventory at 11.163 million head, up 0.7 percent from one year ago.  Monthly on-feed totals have been above year earlier levels the past five months.  Placements in August were down 9.2 percent year over year and August marketings were down 3.3 percent.  Average feedlot placements and marketings have declined sharply in recent months and are now at record low levels in available cattle on feed data (Figure 1). Through the current cattle cycle, the calf crop peaked in 2018 at 36.29 million head and has declined for eight consecutive...

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The recent Cattle on Feed Report indicated that, for August, we had the fewest cattle placed on feed in 30 years, down 9% from August 2025.  This is quite bullish for the fed cattle market for the end of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027. Interestingly, we have 1% more cattle on feed versus 2025. We know the packers want to harvest larger carcasses to compensate for the lower numbers, and the cattle feeders continue to make the cattle bigger to meet their needs.  I am guessing the extreme heat this past Summer hurt the gains, and the downturn...

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South Dakota State University Celebrates the Cattle Industry It was a full and fun weekend for the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences at South Dakota State University Sept. 12 as the university celebrated its Beef Bowl. A large crowd came out for all of the festivities which included a beef barbecue, tailgate contest, a live cattle display and a football game between the SDSU Jackrabbits and the New Haven Chargers. During half-time of the game, the South Dakota State University Friend of the Beef Industry award was given. This year’s recipient was First National Bank in Sioux Falls...

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ProRodeo Hall of Fame stock contractor Jim Sutton Jr. passed away Sept. 3 in Pierre, S.D. He was 91 years old. The South Dakota native ran Sutton Rodeo Company with his father, James H. Sutton Sr., beginning in 1968, and transformed the outfit into one of the top firms in PRORODEO. When asked how he'd want to be remembered during Rodeo Rapid City (S.D.) this past February, he gave a simple answer. "Probably the way it is," Sutton said to the PRORODEO Sports News ahead of his 91st birthday. "All the family is involved, and it looks like they're going to...

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The Data Driven Herd program through the American Angus Association is the result of breeders, board members and staff seeking to recognize American Angus Association® members who are committed to the collection and submission of data on multiple traits to AHIR® to help better characterize phenotypes in both their herd and the Angus breed. In August, 299 herds were recognized as 2026 Gold, Silver and Bronze level Data Driven Herds. This is more than double the number of herds who met the requirements in the program’s inaugural year.  “We have had tremendous uptake in the program over the last year,”...

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    The John Lee and Ellen Njos family has been selected as the 2026 North Dakota Leopold Conservation Award® recipient.  The award honors farmers, ranchers, and forestland owners who go above and beyond in their management of soil health, water quality, and wildlife habitat on working land. The Njos family’s 4,800-acre Coyote Creek Ranch is located near Rhame in Bowman County. They will be formally presented with the ,000 award in December. Sand County Foundation and national sponsor American Farmland Trust present Leopold Conservation Awards to private landowners in 28 states. In North Dakota, the award is presented with...

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   Each year, the Minnesota Beef Council proudly recognizes a Minnesota retailer  for its outstanding commitment to excellence in beef promotion. This year’s 2026 Minnesota Retail Beef Backer Award goes to St. Joseph Meat Market of St. Joseph, Minnesota, a family-owned establishment whose legacy and innovation have made them a pillar of Minnesota’s beef industry. In 1948, John Pflueger bought the St. Joseph Meat Market from Mike Klein. John was a farmer himself, so he knew the basics when it came to butchering and selling the meat. While John was getting on his feet in the meat business, he hired...

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   Each year, the Minnesota Beef Council proudly recognizes a Minnesota retailer  for its outstanding commitment to excellence in beef promotion. This year’s 2026 Minnesota Retail Beef Backer Award goes to St. Joseph Meat Market of St. Joseph, Minnesota, a family-owned establishment whose legacy and innovation have made them a pillar of Minnesota’s beef industry. In 1948, John Pflueger bought the St. Joseph Meat Market from Mike Klein. John was a farmer himself, so he knew the basics when it came to butchering and selling the meat. While John was getting on his feet in the meat business, he hired...

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On Sept. 4 President Donald J. Trump signed two Executive Orders related to America’s ranching industry and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins made additional announcements regarding the cattle and beef industries.  In addition to the two Executive Orders, USDA also announced four additional actions it is taking to follow-up on the USDA Plan to Fortify the American Beef Industry (2025 USDA Beef Plan) released last year, and the Ranchers First Initiative released in late August. Executive Order Supporting America’s Ranchers Combat Predation: American ranchers should be able to protect the cattle they raise. The Executive Order directs the...

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