US cattle herd hits lowest level since 1951
Tight supplies point to elevated beef prices
2 February 2026
1 minute read
By: The US cattle herd dwindled to its smallest size since 1951, Reuters reported, citing the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Friday, signalling that beef prices will stay high for consumers after setting records last year.
The nation had 86.2 million cattle and calves as of January 1, the USDA said in a biannual report, after a persistent drought drove ranchers to slash their herds. That was down 0.4% from a year earlier, when the herd also hit its lowest level since 1951.
Beef prices will likely stay elevated for another two years because that is how long it would take to raise cattle that are ready to be slaughtered, if ranchers start to rebuild their herds, said Rich Nelson, chief strategist for Allendale.
"There is no sign of serious rebuilding," he said.
High food prices contributed to knocking US consumer confidence in January to the lowest level in more than 11-1/2 years, pressuring Republican President Donald Trump to address the issue of affordability which helped propel Democratic candidates to several electoral victories in 2025.
In October, Trump pledged to make beef more affordable. Yet prices have kept rising for hamburger meat and steaks. Retail prices for ground beef reached a record $6.69 per pound in December, up more than 2% from a month earlier and 19% from a year earlier, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The herd of cows raised for beef has declined continuously since 2019 as the drought in the western states burned pastureland and raised feeding costs, forcing ranchers to send more animals to slaughter.
High cattle prices have also encouraged ranchers to sell animals to be slaughtered, rather than keeping them for breeding.
The number of beef cows dropped 1% from a year ago to 27.6 million head as of January 1, the lowest since 1961, according to USDA data. The total herd also includes cows raised for milk, which often are eventually slaughtered for ground beef.
Tyson Foods, one of four large beef processors, is permanently closing a plant in Nebraska that employed about 3,200 workers and reducing operations at a Texas plant. The company is set to report quarterly earnings on Monday.
