Cattle Call is an original production of the Nebraska Rural Radio Association and is presented Blue Chip Herefords – Oxford, Nebraska.
After weeks of uncertainty in the cattle market, a potential reopening of a Colorado beef processing facility could bring a key piece of competition back into the marketplace.
In this week’s episode of Cattle Call, market analyst Joe Kooima of KKV Trading says an agreement involving Cargill’s Fort Morgan facility would be a positive development for cattle producers because the industry needs more buyers bidding on cattle.
“If the packers can get some of their leverage back and make some money, I would imagine that would be an easy way to keep that one open there.”
Kooima says restoring more processing capacity could help create a healthier marketplace after cattle prices recently came under pressure.
“This is a positive feature because now you’re going to get some competition back in the marketplace in the north. Like this week, there’s only two packers out there that were sniffing around for cattle, but we need more.”
He says producers need more than just strong demand. They need enough competition among packers to keep cattle moving.
“We need some more effort from all the packers there to get the market going.”
The agreement still faces additional steps before the plant returns to normal operations, but Kooima says having another major buyer participating in the cattle market would be an important step forward.
Other topics discussed:
- Mexican border reopening to feeder cattle and why the market reaction was expected.
- Whether cattle futures have found support after the recent selloff.
- Weakening basis levels and concerns about producer leverage.
- Global beef supplies, including Australia and South America.
- Rumors and developments surrounding other packing capacity.
- Cash cattle expectations heading into the end of the week.
