Low dairy cow culling boosts cow market

Even though dairy cow slaughter popped higher during the last two weeks of data following the short 4th of July week, dairy cow culling continues well below last year. Reduced dairy cow culling is likely to continue the rest of the year, even though culling may increase seasonally. It’s normal for dairy cow slaughter to climb seasonally after early July. Overall, reduced dairy cow culling is coinciding with low beef culling and is further boosting prices.

Over the last 8 weeks, dairy cow culling has been 18% smaller compared to the same period last year. Dairy cow slaughter is reported by region and major dairy states are included in each region. Regions 9 and 10 include California, Arizona, Idaho, and Washington. Region 2 includes New York and region 5 includes Minnesota and Wisconsin. Regions 4 (Southeastern states), 6 (Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana), and 3 (Virginia and Pennsylvania) include Southern states.

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Aug. 13, 2024

By David Anderson, Ph.D., Texas A&M University, Livestock Marketing Information Center