42 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN December 2024 1/4 Horizontal Nebraska Cattleman Full Color Eisenmenger Farms, Inc. August 2023 “Big yard features, small yard attention.” Eisenmenger Farms, Inc. Joe Eisenmenger, General Manager ▪ Cell: (402) 920-0665 Customer Relations & Cattle Procurement John Eisenmenger, Yard Manager ▪ Cell: (402) 920-1933 ▪ 9,000 head capacity ▪ Within 100 miles of six packers – three of them major ▪ Within 60 miles of four ethanol plants ▪ Grain banking capabilities of corn ▪ Feed financing capabilities 26708 385th St. ▪ Humphrey, NE 68642 ▪ Phone: (402) 923-0401 ▪ Fax: (402) 923-0404 Eisenmenger Farms, Inc. MARKETS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 40 Table 1. Production and Price Forecasts for 2025 I II III IV Annual Production, Millions of pounds USDA-ERS 6540 6650 6425 6310 25925 LMIC 6361 6399 6267 6295 25323 UNL 6390 6564 6413 6337 25704 Composite 6430 6538 6368 6314 25650 Per capita disappearance, retail pounds USDA-ERS 14.80 14.50 14.40 13.80 57.50 LMIC 14.70 14.20 13.90 13.80 56.50 UNL 14.80 14.40 14.20 13.80 57.20 Composite 14.77 14.37 14.17 13.80 57.07 Steers 5-area Direct, Total all grades, dollars/cwt. USDA-ERS 187.00 186.00 185.00 188.00 186.50 LMIC 192.00 195.00 198.00 200.00 196.00 CME 186.00 192.00 184.00 184.00 186.50 UNL 191.00 194.25 194.00 196.50 193.94 Composite 189.00 191.81 190.25 192.13 190.73 Feeder steers 700-900, Medium Frame No. 1, Nebraska, dollars/cwt. USDA-ERS 262.00 273.00 274.00 286.00 273.75 LMIC 271.00 284.00 290.50 292.00 284.38 CME 276.50 286.00 287.00 287.00 284.13 UNL 275.51 277.38 287.89 280.05 280.21 Composite 271.25 280.10 284.85 286.26 280.61 Feeder steers 500-600, Medium Frame No. 1, Nebraska, dollars/cwt. LMIC 330.50 342.00 339.50 325.00 334.25 UNL 327.87 337.77 332.37 326.46 331.12 Composite 329.18 339.88 335.93 325.73 332.68 Feeder heifers 500-600, Medium Frame No. 1, Nebraska, dollars/cwt. UNL 287.43 298.22 295.82 290.93 293.10 Feeder heifers 700-900, Medium Frame No. 1, Nebraska, dollars/cwt. UNL 242.99 251.70 262.69 257.11 253.62 CONTINUED ON PAGE 44 FED CATTLE With consumer demand showing signs of resilience, let’s examine the implications for fed cattle supply. In 2024, meat processors were willing to push the upper limits on heavier carcasses to solve the deficit in the total number of head. The goal of the meat processor is total pounds of throughput at certain quality grades. Fewer head at heavier weights was the solution to the total pounds of production in 2024. Feedlots maintained heavier cattle due to reduced grid discounts, lower corn costs and increased feeder cattle replacement costs. For example, cattle weighing 900 to 1,000 pounds, 1,000 to 1,050 pounds, and more than 1,050 pounds were being discounted approximately $1, $5 and $15 per hundredweight, respectively, throughout the year. In order to continue pushing the limits of these weights, the grid discounts would likely need to come down further and corn would have to remain cheap as feeder cattle prices will certainly be higher. One limiting factor is that yield discounts are large and have been growing in 2024. Given the assumptions about total beef production, heavier carcass weights, corn costs and feeder cattle prices, this could put the total number of fed carcasses throughout the entire calendar year at approximately 30.6 million head, weighing on average 840 pounds. This is compared to 31.5 million head and an 843-pound average carcass weight in 2024. FEEDER CATTLE Next, let’s examine the feeder cattle market potential. This is where I anticipate most of the excitement coming from in 2025. All the feeder cattle that will be harvested in 2025 have already been born, leading us to the January 2025 cattle inventory report released on Jan. 31, 2025. I will be watching the beef cows and heifers that have calved and heifers that were retained for breeding. While the national number
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