Iowa Feedlot Owners Run 450-500 Cattle on Slim Margins as Calf Prices Squeeze Profits
Updated
Updated · Fort Dodge Messenger · May 8
Iowa Feedlot Owners Run 450-500 Cattle on Slim Margins as Calf Prices Squeeze Profits
4 articles · Updated · Fort Dodge Messenger · May 8
Dayton, Iowa, feedlot owners A.J. and Kellie Blair say profits have narrowed even as they keep feeding 450-500 cattle and custom-feeding about 2,400 hogs a year.
High calf prices are the main squeeze: the couple calculates purchase cost, feed expense and likely return before buying, but says competition for scarce calves leaves little room for gain.
That shortage traces to a shrinking U.S. cow-calf herd, while in Iowa pasture has given way to row crops, making cow-calf operations less common and pushing up feeder-calf prices.
The Blairs expanded with a monoslope barn in 2010 and an addition in 2019, betting livestock could support their family, even though feedlot economics still mean some groups make money and others lose it.
Direct beef sales offer only a small sideline because sending one animal to a locker means holding back a $3,000-$4,000 sale, underscoring how tight margins remain in the middle of the beef chain.
With beef prices soaring for consumers, why are family-run feedlots on the brink of financial collapse?
Amid wildfires and border closures, can the American beef industry recover from its lowest cattle numbers in 75 years?