Cattle report

Cattle Inventory Up 4 Percent from 2015. All cattle and calves in the United States, as of July 1, 2017, totaled 103 million head. This is 4 percent above the 98.2 million head on July 1, 2015.
All cows and heifers that have calved, at 41.9 million head, are 5 percent above the 39.8 million head on July 1, 2015. Beef cows, at 32.5 million head, are up 7 percent from two years ago. Milk cows, at 9.40 million head, are up 1 percent from 2015.
All heifers 500 pounds and over, as of July 1, 2017, totaled 16.2 million head. This is 3 percent above the 15.7 million head on July 1, 2015. Beef replacement heifers, at 4.70 million head, are down 2 percent from two years ago. Milk replacement heifers, at 4.20 million head, are unchanged from 2015. Other heifers, at 7.30 million head, are 9 percent above two years earlier.
Calves under 500 pounds in the United States, as of July 1, 2017, totaled 28.0 million head. This is 5 percent above the 26.7 million head on July 1, 2015. Steers weighing 500 pounds and over totaled 14.5 million head, up 3 percent from two years ago. Bulls weighing 500 pounds and over totaled 2.00 million head, up 5 percent from 2015.
Calf Crop Up 3 Percent from 2016 The 2017 calf crop in the United States is expected to be 36.3 million head, up 3 percent from last year’s calf crop and up 6 percent from 2015. Calves born during the first half of 2017 are estimated at 26.5 million head. This is up 4 percent from the first half of 2016 and 8 percent above 2015. An additional 9.80 million calves are expected to be born during the second half of 2017.
Cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United States for all feedlots totaled 12.8 million head on July 1, 2017. The inventory is up 6 percent from the July 1, 2015 total of 12.1 million head. Cattle on feed, in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head, accounted for 84.5 percent of the total cattle on feed on July 1, 2017. This is down 0.1 percent from 2015. The combined total of calves under 500 pounds and other heifers and steers over 500 pounds (outside of feedlots) is 37.0 million head. This is 5 percent above the 35.4 million head on July 1, 2015.