Milk continues to gush across the U.S., though the pace of growth has slowed somewhat. USDA’s most recent Milk Production report, released earlier this week, showed that volumes across the U.S. ticked up by 2.3% year over year in May. Once adjusted for component growth the increase is likely to be even larger. While still strong by historical standards, this is actually the lowest year over year increase since April 2025. The country’s largest dairy states continued to record

The June Cattle on Feed report showed a feedlot inventory 2.1 percent larger year over year. This was the second consecutive month of larger feedlot totals (May was up 1.8 percent year over year) after 17 months of year over year decreases in cattle on feed inventories. However, a bigger feedlot total does not mean that cattle numbers are increasing. Feedlot inventories increased year over year in May and June because feedlot marketings have decreased more than feedlot placem

Producers are seeing lower milk prices from January 2025 highs. While this downturn still reflects basic supply and demand, there are significant differences compared to recent cycles: strong cull and beef prices, earning component incentives, corn silage quality by region and a younger generation of managers. Read on as we unpack what dairy producers should know about this milk price downcycle. 1. Strong beef prices High cull cow and beef prices are one of the biggest contra