News

Red meat production dips slightly from year-ago levels

Commercial red meat production for November was down slightly on the year at 4.79 billion pounds.

Beef was reported at 2.42 billion pounds, 2 percent higher than November 2021.  Cattle slaughter was up 2 percent at 2.91 million head with the average live weight also increasing, up 2 pounds. 

Pork came out at 2.35 billion pounds, down 2 percent from last year.  Hog slaughter declined 2 percent and the average weight declined a pound.

For the year to date, U.S. commercial red meat production is 51 billion pounds, a little bit slower than the year-ago pace, with a 2% decrease for pork against a 2% increase for beef.

The USDA says October’s dairy cow slaughter was 250,900 head, a decline of 1,900 on the month and an increase of 5,600 from last year.