The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s most recent inventory report shows Oklahoma’s beef cowherd is at its lowest number since 2015.
Cattle prices continue to rise for Oklahoma ranchers because of the lack of supply. Customers' demand for beef remains unchanged. Oklahoma State University Extension Agriculture Economics Specialist Scott Clawson says that the price for cattle is cyclical.
“Prices go up, it entices expansion of current producers. It entices new people to come into the business. And then we wake up one day and look around and we’re like, ‘Oh man, we got a bunch of cows again.’ So then, prices start to tail as supply increases.”
Clawson says the best cure for high prices is high prices, which will eventually lead back to lower cattle prices, then lower beef prices in grocery stores and butcher shops. For now, Clawson says cost-conscious customers might change their beef preferences.
“Maybe I go from a steak to a burger, you know, things like that. We’re trading down in terms of kind of price, uh, price level for whatever they’re wanting to consume.”
Something else that will combat increasing prices in stores is importing beef from overseas.
The low cattle supply isn’t just an Oklahoma issue. Numbers are down across the country. Currently cattle inventory nationwide is at the lowest number since the 1960s.
