Strong Demand and Evolving Consumer Trends

As fall sets in and producers look toward the year-end cattle market, the beef industry continues to balance supply challenges with strong demand. Millennial Ag spoke with Dr. Phil Bass, meat scientist and professor at the University of Idaho, about where the industry stands and the opportunities he sees ahead.

Bigger Carcasses, Steadier Supply

One of the most significant shifts Bass highlighted is the growth in carcass weights. “When I was doing my Ph.D. research at Colorado State, a really heavy beef carcass was about 850 pounds,” he said. “Now, 850 pounds is about 100 pounds under what the average steer carcass weighs.”

Today, average carcass weights consistently hover between 930 and 950 pounds, with many topping 1,000 pounds. This growth has helped stabilize beef supply despite a shrinking national cow herd. “Thankfully, we have big cattle,” Bass noted. “We maybe don’t have quite as much beef being produced, but it would have been a lot less if we didn’t have these really big carcasses.”

Herd Rebuilding Will Take Time

Even with carcass size gains, Bass cautioned that the industry is not likely to see a quick rebound in overall cattle numbers. Ongoing drought across the central plains continues to slow herd rebuilding. However, beef-on-dairy crossbreeding has helped bolster supply. “The dairy industry is somewhat of a savior of the U.S. beef industry right now,” Bass explained. Crossbred calves are filling feedyard and packing plant capacity while also producing beef with strong marbling.

A Milestone for Ag Land Management and Water Resource Efficiency in Colorado

Weld County, one of the most agriculturally productive regions in the United States, has taken a decisive step forward in supporting local farming operations. In a groundbreaking move, the county has entered into an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety (DRMS), reshaping the permitting process for agricultural land leveling and irrigation reservoir dredging.

Why This Matters

Agricultural land leveling and the cleaning of irrigation reservoirs are essential to maintain crop yield, irrigation efficiency, and water storage capacity. Until now, farmers and landowners engaging in these activities often faced significant regulatory hurdles, including the need to obtain state-level mining permits (110 or 112 permits) from DRMS, even when the primary purpose was clearly agricultural.

Thanks to this new agreement, these vital operations are now recognized for their agricultural intent rather than classified under mining regulations. This shift simplifies compliance, reduces costs, and accelerates project timelines for producers throughout Weld County.

Water is the most important nutrient in dairy farming, yet it often goes unnoticed. Vern Osborne, a professor emeritus from the University of Guelph, highlights its significance in a recent episode of “The Dairy Podcast Show.” Throughout the podcast, Osborne delves into the critical yet often overlooked role that water plays in dairy herd health and performance. He shares insights and advice from nutrient supplementation through water to improving water quality and facility design.

The Mega Molecule: Water’s Vital Function

Osborne affectionately refers to water as the “mega molecule,” emphasizing its fundamental role in every cell function within a cow’s body.

“Cows are incredibly sensitive to water quality, detecting elements at parts-per-million levels,” he says.

Transition cows, in particular, demonstrate a sharp increase in water intake. Osborne and his team explored supplementing water with nutrients such as glucose, soybean dextrose and omega fatty acids. Their research revealed water can carry vital nutrients to maintain cows in a positive energy status, affecting health and productivity favorably, even amid stressors like calving.

Practical Implementation and Facility Design

Understanding the Rescinding of the Roadless Rule

The United States Forest Service’s 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (Roadless Rule) affects about 59 million acres of inventoried roadless areas within National Forest System lands by banning road building, road rebuilding, and most timber harvesting. On June 23, 2025, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the plan to rescind this rule, citing the need to improve local forest management, lower wildfire risks, and support rural economies and timber industries.

A press release on the USDA website states, “This rule is overly restrictive and poses real harm to millions of acres of our national forests. In total, 30% of National Forest System lands are impacted by this rule. For example, nearly 60% of forest service land in Utah is restricted from road development and is unable to be properly managed for fire risk. In Montana, it is 58%, and in Alaska’s Tongass National Forest, the largest in the country, 92% is impacted.”

Federal Lands: Managed, Not Owned

Many people are unaware that the federal government does not own public lands in the traditional sense. Instead, these lands should be called “federally managed public lands” because the federal government manages the lands in trust for the American people.

“A show-cattle operation in Pueblo County is locked in a battle with the county commissioners and county planning commission about whether their cow-calf operation is technically a feedyard or not. Much of the fight seems lost in translation, and at the end of the day, an existing Planned Unit Development (PUD) that limits the number of livestock on the property may either settle the dispute or drive the need for a special permit. However, it does raise questions about right-to-farm resolutions, anti-agriculture precedents and the ability of decision makers to understand the multibillion-dollar ag industry.

Anna Pratt Coiner, the property owner and owner of Pratt Show Cattle, received orders from Pueblo County to cease utilizing her property as a feedyard. Feedyards have long drawn public scrutiny for odor, dust, flies and the ease in painting concentrated feeding as evil, despite the role it plays in feeding people and anchoring the state’s economy. I was hopeful following the failed City and County of Denver vote to outlaw slaughterhouses and maintain voters truly do value people and offer that vote as proof. From my perspective, the Pratt operation is not a feedlot and arguing the definition of the term is akin to beating one’s head against a sturdy wall.

“On Thursday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced the Rural Veterinary Shortage Action Plan that will expand the support available for rural veterinarians.

“Rural veterinarians are vital for the agricultural economy in the United States. Our farmers and ranchers rely on these critical services to prevent the transmission of animal disease, protect our food supply and support America’s rural economy,” said Rollins during a press conference at Mississippi State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. “As the number of rural food animal veterinarians continues to decline, USDA is putting farmers first to ensure we build back our first line of defense in our animal food production system – the rural veterinarian.”

The plan aims to support veterinarians and protect livestock across rural communities by:

• expanding grants and financial assistance
• streamlining loan applications
• investing in economic research to guide solutions
• making federal service more attractive to veterinarians
• recruiting more students from rural America into veterinary schools

Veterinarian Shortage

According to the AVMA, the number of companion animal veterinarians has increased by 22% over the past decade; however, the number of mixed animal and food animal veterinarians has decreased by 15%. Meanwhile, the national cattle inventory was only down 2.5 million head, or approximately 1%, in January 2025 compared with January 2015, as reported by the USDA’s National Agriculture Statistics Service. USDA has designated at least one rural area in nearly every state as having unmet veterinary needs.

“EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the decision at Christensen Farms in Minnesota, calling it part of the Trump Administration’s effort to reduce regulatory costs while maintaining environmental protections.

“EPA is saving billions of dollars in costs the American people would otherwise see in the prices of the meat and poultry they buy at the grocery store while ensuring the protection of human health and the environment,” Zeldin said.

The move was welcomed by agriculture and meat industry groups, who argued the proposed rule would have forced plant closures, raised food prices and threatened livestock markets. USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins called it a “commonsense approach that protects America’s meat and poultry processors and the farmers and ranchers they serve from unnecessary red tape.”

Industry leaders including the National Pork Producers Council, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, National Chicken Council, U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, and National Turkey Federation issued statements praising the decision as critical to keeping small and mid-sized processors viable. The Meat Institute also said the action would preserve jobs and protect consumers from higher food prices.

A new lawsuit filed against Tyson Foods has made headlines. At first glance, it looks like a concerned shareholder simply demanding transparency. Filed in Delaware’s Court of Chancery, the suit seeks to force Tyson to turn over internal records about its poultry operations, citing both worker and animal welfare allegations. The plaintiff in this case, Michael Castagna, is described as a Tyson shareholder, but the suit is actually being driven by a new animal rights group, Legal Impact for Chickens (LIC). LIC characterizes the case as a shareholder “books-and-records” demand under Section 220 of Delaware law.

Legal Action for Chickens (LIC)

LIC is a California-based animal rights litigation group that received its 501 (c) (3) status in March 2022. A look at their first IRS Form 990 states, “Legal Impact for Chickens’ mission is to protect the welfare of farmed animals (livestock and poultry) through the use of the legal system. We primarily strive to achieve this goal through civil litigation.”

A review of their leadership team, most of whom previously worked at organizations like PETA, the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), Food and Water Watch, Mercy For Animals, and the Humane Society of the United States (now called A Humane World for Animals), shines a light on their true agenda. The groups affiliated with the leadership team use animal welfare as a cover and openly support ending the use of animals for food entirely.

“U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins has announced a commitment to new actions to increase the number of rural food animal veterinarians across the U.S. and recruit new veterinarians to join the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in their role to protect American ranchers, animals, and our food supply.

Secretary Rollins also announced two awardees of the Veterinary Services Grant Program which will allow for expanded capabilities to serve livestock producers in rural Mississippi and opened a new consolidated USDA office with the Rural Development, the Farm Service Agency, and the Mississippi Farm Bureau in line with USDA’s reorganization efforts. The Secretary was joined by Governor of Mississippi Tate Reeves, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, Mississippi State University (MSU) President Dr. Mark Keenum, and Mississippi Farm Bureau President Mike McCormick.

“Rural veterinarians are vital for the agricultural economy in the United States. Our farmers and ranchers rely on these critical services to prevent the transmission of animal disease, protect our food supply, and support America’s rural economy. As the number of rural food animal veterinarians continues to decline, USDA is putting Farmers First to ensure we build back our first line of defense in our animal food production system – the rural veterinarian. With these new investments in scholarships and pay incentives, USDA is not only strengthening our animal food production system but also listening to producers and veterinarians across the country to ensure our programs meet real-world needs. Together, we will keep America’s food supply strong, safe, and secure,” said Secretary Brooke Rollins.