00:00In Nebraska, beef isn't just food, it's identity.
00:04But America's appetite is outpacing the herds that feed it.
00:08From global trade talks with countries like Argentina to small farms like Oak Barn Beef,
00:13demand is driving prices higher than ever and putting pressure on every step of the
00:18supply chain.
00:20At Oak Barn Beef, we're a fifth-generation cattle-raising family and we sell and ship
00:27our beef nationwide.
00:29We also sell products like tallow and other kitchen necessities, farm-raised products,
00:35but beef is our bread and butter.
00:37Across the plains, herds are thinner but demand is thick.
00:41Consumers keep filling their carts with beef even as prices reach new heights.
00:45The USDA's latest cattle inventory report shows just how tight supply has become.
00:50Those numbers aren't just statistics for cattle farmers like Hannah Klitz in West Point.
00:55The real-world pressures that start long before beef reaches the plate.
00:59The U.S. cattle herd is at a historical low, which can affect, again, those live calf prices because the commodity
01:07market is driven by demand and supply. And when supply is lower and demand is still high, then the price increases,
01:15which does affect us. As of January 2024, there were about 87.2 million head of cattle in the U.S., down 2% from the year before, the lowest level in more than 70 years.
01:27The calf crop, the next generation of cattle, also fell 2%, dropping to 33.6 million.
01:34It takes time to raise a cow, so when supply shrinks, there's no quick fix. That's why today's shortage drives tomorrow's prices.
01:42And those low numbers aren't just about market trends. Weather has been a major player, too.
01:47Especially with drought-ridden years, you feel those effects so many years afterwards because if people don't have enough water to feed their animals, then they have to sell those animals.
01:57Elliott Dennis, an associate professor of livestock economics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, says the market is being driven by both short supply and strong consumer appetite.
02:08He says Americans love beef, and they're willing to pay premium prices to keep it on the table. At the same time, global trade deals are adding pressure.
02:17A new plan to expand Argentina's beef import quota would allow four times more product into the U.S. market.
02:24Dennis says that could temporarily lower cattle prices here, but the impact is likely short-lived.
02:30Argentina's share of U.S. imports would still be just over 1%.
02:34Those different factors can affect the commodity market pricing, which then in turn affects our business, too, because we are buying cattle around those commodity market pricing.
02:45So just looking at buying cattle for 2026 here soon, those cattle are so much more expensive than they have been in years past.
02:55And while imports get headlines, exports are where Nebraska shines.
03:00Dennis says high-quality beef shipped to countries like Japan, South Korea, and Canada brings in more value than the lower-cost trimmings that come into the U.S.
03:09We went through the pandemic during those eight years, and we saw a lot of changes in demand in how consumers shopped during those times.
03:16So I think the pandemic just brought on a lot of the farm-to-table movement and people wanting to know where their food comes from and have trust in those sources.
03:26At Oak Barn Beef in West Point, that global demand is local.
03:30From farm-to-table, their family business ships nationwide, showing how Nebraska farms fuel both the economy and America's appetite.
03:37Nebraska beef makes up about 85 percent of all livestock sales in the state and more than half of total agriculture revenue.
03:45And even as producers work to rebuild herds, analysts expect prices to stay high, driven by consumer demand showing no sign of slowing down.
03:54With our input costs being so high, it does make our margins so slim that there's not a lot left at the end of the day.
04:01For Straight Arrow News, I'm Kaylee Carey.
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