Livestock Industry Snapshot

• USDA forecasts continued strong pricing for choice steers with 2025 average prices coming in at $228.56/cwt. and 2026 average prices forecast to average $249.00. Cattle and beef prices are likely to remain elevated for at least another two to three years due to low herd sizes and limited herd expansion. Retail beef prices are at record highs, but demand remains strong.
• Broiler prices are forecast relatively flat at $1.28 in 2025 and $1.31 in 2026. Despite recent declines, egg prices remain elevated and are forecast to average $4.03 in 2025, declining to $2.11 in 2026, depending on what happens with Avian Influenza. Egg production is expanding with decentralized contract barns in New York.
• Non-feed input costs, such as labor, have significantly increased, but the falling cost of feed has provided some inflation relief for producers. Corn prices have fallen 10% over the last year, hay prices were down 19%, and soybeans have declined 20%.
• As with many other agricultural commodities, trade and tariffs are a concern for this sector. 

¹ USDA WASDE