The March Cattle on Feed Report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows the number of cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the U.S. for feedlots with a capacity of 1,000 or more head was 12.0 million head on March 1, 2021, 2 percent above March 1, 2020. This is the second-highest March 1 inventory since the series began in 1996.
But according to a story from Gary Crawford, the nation’s feedlot inventory numbers seem to be holding steady over the last three months.
In the March report, USDA noted placements in feedlots during February was 1.68 million head, 2 percent below 2020. Marketing’s of fed cattle during February totaled 1.73 million head, also 2 percent below 2020.