Markets
combination of plant closures in primarily cattle-
deficit regions and by rising cattle inventories. 77.0% of the commercial red meat production
in 2018. Iowa had 14.4% of the overall total.
Getting packing capacity in line with expected
cattle supplies should spread fixed costs of
existing packing plants over a more optimum
level of cattle slaughtered. That should
decrease cost per head of cattle slaughtered. USDA provides FI cattle slaughter data in NASS’
annual Livestock Slaughter report. However, no
cattle slaughter (steers, heifers, cows and bulls)
data are available for Iowa. Data are not published
when an individual plant’s data could be divulged.
If not published, these data are still included in
U.S. and region totals. USDA reviews the data
It is important to note that these data are not
granular enough to clearly look
at structural changes in meat
packing. For example, slaughter
level does not address changes
in meat packing firm size from
divestitures, internal growth,
mergers and acquisitions, levels
of concentration and packing
plant efficiency gains. The data
simply speak to the number of FI
packing plants and plants by size.
2018 red meat production record
high
Commercial U.S. red meat
(beef, veal, pork, and lamb and
mutton) production totaled
53.417 billion pounds in 2018,
up 2.7% from 2017 and a record
level. All categories were larger.
Commercial beef production
during 2018 was 26.873 billion
pounds, up 2.6% from 2017
and second to only the 2002
record level. Commercial
cattle slaughter totaled 33.005
million head, up 2.5% from
2017. Federal inspection
comprised 98.5% of the total.
In 2018, the top 10 states
for commercial red meat
production, in order, were
Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Texas,
Illinois, Minnesota, North
Carolina, Colorado, Missouri
and Indiana. These states had
176 | JUNE/JULY 2019