THE PROTEIN PULSE — DRIVE TIME

Special Report | October 23rd, 2026

Cattle on Feed

HOST: Protein Pulse Drive Time. Special report, October 23rd. Cattle on Feed. From The Sparks Group.

SHAWN: The headline says cattle on feed are basically unchanged from last year. I wouldn't confuse that with a stable cattle pipeline. September placements dropped twelve percent, the lowest September number in thirty years of reporting. And here's what catches my attention. The trade was already expecting fewer placements. USDA came in another three point seven percentage points below those expectations. Placements declined across every weight class, and some of the biggest cattle-feeding states took substantial hits. Meanwhile, marketings are running lower. That's helping keep cattle in feedlots today, but it doesn't replace the cattle that aren't coming in. The inventory is holding. The replacement pipeline isn't.

HOST: October 1st cattle on feed eleven point three seven two million, down zero point four percent. September placements one point seven seven seven million, down twelve percent. Marketings one point five two four million, down seven percent. Kansas, Nebraska and Texas accounted for about eighty-two percent of the national placement decline.

SHAWN: Eleven point three seven million cattle on feed tells us where we are. One point seven eight million placements tells us more about where we are going. Stay disciplined.

HOST: Protein Pulse Drive Time. Shawn Sparks, The Sparks Group.

SHAWN: Stay disciplined.