Beef prices in the U.S. reach record highs due to cattle shortage
(NBC, KYMA/KECY) - Beef prices have hit record highs, largely due to a major shortage of cattle across the U.S.
On a trip to some random grocery stores, shoppers are encountering some mouth-watering steaks with eye-watering prices, ranging from $12 to $21 to $53.
"We love getting all we can for our calves," said Bill Deganahl, President of the Arizona Cattle Grower's Association and third generation rancher. "I don't think these cattle have ever been higher."
"The rancher for years has always taken it in the backside and somebody else has made the money and it gives us a chance to get some of that money back," said Mike Gannuscio, a rancher.
Ranchers like Gannuscio are making money with their cattle a lot of it, but while they'll take it, they're not exactly excited about it.
They play the long game as they know what could be coming.
"It's great that we're making the money on the calves, but how long does it sustain? How long before the consumer says, 'Look, I just can't afford this,'" Gannuscio expressed.
"This is an unprecedented time in the cattle market and at some point it's going to be hard for the consumer to purchase beef. Pork is a lot cheaper," Deganahl added.
The main reason why beef prices are getting higher: There just aren't that many cows.
The U.S. keeps track of how many cattle there are. Right now, there are about 87 million cattle, but that's the lowest number since 1951.
"When you keep a heifer to retain a heifer for your breeding stock before her calf hits the market for beef, we're talking four years," Deganahl explained.
Most cattle in Arizona are free range they roam on public lands. Ranchers can feed them, but they need grass on that land and grass doesn't grow much in a drought.
"Right now, I'd love for my herd to be bigger, but we have no rain. So we're just trying to sustain what we've got," Gannuscio shared.
The U.S. imports beef from places like Brazil, which is the third largest supplier. That beef which is mostly hamburger now has a 50% tariff on it.
Right now, Deganahl says prices are so high it makes more sense to sell a cow than to keep it to make new cows, which means bigger herds and lower prices could be years off.
