Soaring Beef Prices Help Farmers
This video is no longer available.
All it takes is a quick trip to the grocery store and you’ll that beef prices are at an all time high.
That means record profits for cattle farmers across the state.
A year ago, these calves would have sold for about $700 a piece.
Now, each one would fetch well over $1,000.
That’s great news for long time cattle farmer Tony Hopper.
“We operated at a loss for many years. For many years prices were below break even on an operation like this. Even now it’s not that lucrative because of the cost of equipment. A pickup truck can cost 60 to 70 thousand dollars,” said Hopper.
He says that’s one reason many farmers have gotten out of the business, which helps to drive prices up.
At the end of the day, it’s all about supply and demand.
“Because of continuing drought out west and our cattle numbers are at a 60 year low. Demand for beef both domestically and internationally is strong,” said Billy Powell, Executive Vice President of the Alabama Cattleman’s Association.
That demand helps make cattle one of the biggest farming industries in the state, second only to poultry.
Powell says with higher prices, that means an even bigger impact on the state.
“We’ll sell over 500 million dollars worth of cattle and calves this year. And that money turns over in the local economy. So we have about a 3 billion dollar impact on the economy for the state,” said Powell.
Hopper is already planning on what to do with the extra money he’ll have coming in this year.
“We’ve invested in some tractors and another bailer and a hay cutter we’d like to have and have needed. We’d like to have a few more cows, but the price of cows now is going to make it difficult to do that,” said Hopper.
