R-CALF USA

10/13/2026

Beef packing plants have closed. Regional cattle buyers have disappeared. Workers have lost jobs, and cattle producers are dealing with the loss of nearby markets. The damage is well underway. Washington should be acting right now.

Tyson’s Lexington, Nebraska, plant closed earlier this year. Its Joslin, Illinois, plant has closed. JBS ended cattle slaughter at Souderton, Pennsylvania, while keeping downstream processing operations. Tyson also reduced Amarillo to one shift and announced plans to sell Pasco, Washington.

These are real withdrawals from cattle country. They demand an immediate investigation by the Agriculture and Justice Departments, followed by enforcement wherever the evidence establishes violations.

A packer may say it can maintain national production by moving slaughter to other plants. But that does not restore the buyer a producer just lost. National output tells us very little about whether a rancher or feeder still has competing bids and an affordable route to market.

Cattle cannot wait indefinitely. Every delayed delivery means more feed, more financing, and more care. Longer hauls mean freight expense and shrink. Fewer buyers mean fewer opportunities to reject a bad bid. Producers are carrying those costs right now while the packers quietly reorganize their businesses.

And the damage does not stop at the feedlot. When feeders lose outlets, they cut purchases from ranchers and backgrounders. Feeding activity will likely move toward surviving plants. Independent operations farther away face greater pressure to shrink or exit.

Click below to read the full commentary.

For Immediate Release: October 13, 2026 Contact: R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard Phone: 406-252-2516; [email protected] Please find below R-CALF USA’s weekly opinion/commentary that discusses the implication of recent plant […]

10/12/2026

Beef packing plants have closed. Regional cattle buyers have disappeared. Workers have lost jobs, and cattle producers are dealing with the loss of nearby markets.

While packers may maintain national production by shifting slaughter to other facilities, that does nothing to restore the local buyers and competitive markets cattle producers have lost. Fewer buyers mean fewer bids, while longer hauls, delayed deliveries and rising costs put additional pressure on independent producers.

R-CALF USA is calling for an immediate investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of Justice into packing plant closures, purchasing decisions and their impact on competition. A closure alone does not establish unlawful conduct, but regulators must investigate promptly and enforce the law when its requirements are met.

Independent cattle producers need action now, before today's lost outlets become tomorrow's permanent loss of ranches, feedlots and rural opportunities.

Watch 📺: Cattle Markets Are Disappearing. Washington Must Act.

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10/09/2026

Come along with R-CALF USA to Nevada! 🐂🏜️

From exploring the Espil family’s cattle and sheep operation to gathering with producers at our meeting in Fallon, we had a great time visiting with ranching families and hearing firsthand about the challenges they are facing.

Where should R-CALF USA head next? Let us know👇

10/09/2026

Producer accounts describe lost buyers, reduced feeding activity and higher transportation costs as marketing outlets disappeared. One feeding operation reported cutting purchases to approximately 15 percent of normal capacity after losing dependable marketing agreements. Another reported buying no feeder lambs in fall 2022 because meat from its previous crop remained unsold.

The survey supplied additional evidence from participating operations. Fifty-three of 111 respondents reported that buyers referenced imported lamb or import prices when reducing bids, prices or purchase volumes. Responding feeders and combined feeder-growers reported a 45.4 percent decline in annual lamb marketings between 2021 and 2025. Sixty-seven of 102 respondents reported postponed or cancelled sheep-enterprise investments totaling approximately $9.77 million.

The brief explains that the survey describes participating businesses and is not a statistically representative national sample.

R-CALF USA also acknowledges recent improvements in lamb prices, selected retail sales and processor profitability. It argues, however, that those gains coexist with a smaller breeding flock, diminished production capacity and weakened marketing relationships.

R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard drew a parallel between the sheep and cattle industries, noting that stronger cattle prices coexist with a smaller cow herd, fewer ranchers and diminished production capacity. “The sheep industry is the canary in the coal mine for America’s cattle producers,” Bullard said. “Higher prices alone don’t reverse the loss of ranchers and breeding herds. The cattle industry is following the same path, and we need to recognize the warning.”

Click below to read the full news release.

For Immediate Release Contact: R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard Phone: 406-252-2516; [email protected]   WASHINGTON, Oct. 9, 2026 — R-CALF USA yesterday filed a prehearing brief with the U.S. International Trade […]

10/09/2026

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10/02/2026

Consider the average of roughly ninety thousand fed cattle slaughtered per weekday reported by Oklahoma State University in November 2025. Assuming fourteen-hundred-pound cattle, a one-dollar-per-hundredweight price reduction across that volume would reduce the value of a day’s cattle slaughter by over one and a quarter million dollars.

That illustrates how even a small price reduction can translate into substantial producer losses.

Packers have used formula purchases to shift large volumes of cattle out of the negotiated cash market. USDA data show formula purchases increasing from 33.2 percent in 2005 to 63.3 percent in 2025. Over the same period, negotiated cash purchases fell from 52.1 percent to 17.8 percent.

Investigators must identify which formula purchases commit cattle before establishing a base price and tie payment to future cash transactions.

The consequences reach beyond the feedlot. Weaker bids and delayed sales can increase feeding and financing costs. Contract sellers also receive the affected benchmark. Lower returns on finished cattle can reduce what feeders pay for feeder cattle, transmitting harm to stocker operators and cow-calf producers.

A premium may benefit an individual seller while the pricing arrangement weakens the market for producers collectively.

R-CALF USA’s position is clear: contracts that bind producers before establishing a base price, then tie that price to future negotiated cash transactions, should be prohibited.

Click below to read the full commentary.

For Immediate Release: October 2, 2026 Contact: R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard Phone: 406-252-2516; [email protected]   Please find below R-CALF USA’s weekly opinion/commentary that discusses the steps the government should […]

10/01/2026

On Sept. 25, Washington Court of Appeals Commissioner Hailey L. Landrus stayed the PCHB proceedings while that appeal is considered, finding that the Kings could suffer irreparable harm if required to proceed before the administrative board while their constitutional challenge remains unresolved.

Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF), which represents the Kings, sought the stay. Following the ruling, PLF attorney Allison Daniel said, “Today the commissioner recognized that being forced through an unconstitutional proceeding is itself an injury. The Kings deserve to defend their ranch before a jury of their peers.”

The stay does not resolve the Department of Ecology’s allegations against the King Ranch or determine whether the Kings are entitled to a jury trial. The Court of Appeals will now consider whether the dismissal of the Kings’ lawsuit was proper.

If the Kings ultimately prevail on their constitutional claims, the case could have broader implications for the use of administrative proceedings in Washington and the circumstances under which a government agency may adjudicate alleged violations without a jury.

R-CALF USA has repeatedly called for federal oversight of the state’s actions, urging intervention by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, supporting subsequent oversight by USDA and the Environmental Protection Agency, and raising the King Ranch case before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as an example of government actions affecting agricultural producers and their property rights.

Click below to read the full news release.

For Immediate Release By: R-CALF USA Communications Director Jaiden Moreland Contact: R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard Phone: 406-252-2516; [email protected]   BILLINGS, Mont., Oct. 1, 2026 – A Washington Court of […]

10/01/2026

R-CALF USA’s work is made possible because of producers across the country who continue to show up and get involved. September was a perfect example of that!

In Fallon, Nevada, we gathered with more than 120 area producers for a great meal and discussion on the issues facing independent cattle producers. Eleven members of R-CALF USA’s staff and leadership made the trip to Nevada, with board members, chairs and several family members traveling on their own dime to spend time with producers and help make the meeting a success.

In Platte, South Dakota, we kicked off the 2026-27 R-CALF USA Rollover Calf Sale season, where producers raised more than $7,500 to support R-CALF USA’s work. Former President and Checkoff Chair Brett Kenzy represented R-CALF USA and visited with producers at the sale.

Also in September, R-CALF USA leadership headed back to Washington, D.C., twice, and Region VI Director Freddie Keaton and Animal Health Chair Dr. Max Thornsberry spoke at our affiliate ICOM’s annual convention in Missouri.

From the producers who take the time to attend a meeting and share what they are seeing at home, to the livestock markets that open their doors, the people who provide meals, the families who donate calves and the buyers who raise their hands, R-CALF USA is truly a grassroots organization powered by people who believe in the future of America’s cattle and sheep industries.

A special thank you to the Espil family, Jack Payne and Nevada Livestock Marketing, James Fulwider and Kevin Talsma, Platte Livestock Market and everyone who helped make these events possible.

If you want to host an area meeting, organize a Rollover Calf Sale or donate a calf in your community, give the R-CALF USA office a call (406) 252-2516.

And if you’re not already a member, we need your support! Join R-CALF USA at www.r-calfusa.com/membership.

09/30/2026

The negotiated cash market is where producers and packers bargain directly over price. Those transactions also establish benchmarks used to price cattle sold through other arrangements.

But as more cattle are committed in advance through unpriced formula contracts, fewer remain available for independent cash bidding. Packers can draw on contracted supplies before buying cash cattle, reducing their need to compete in the market that establishes their contract prices.

USDA data show formula purchases increasing from 33.2% in 2005 to 63.3% in 2025. Over the same period, negotiated cash purchases fell from 52.1% to just 17.8%.

These arrangements can also discourage aggressive bidding. A higher cash bid can raise payments on cattle already secured under contract, while a lower benchmark reduces those payments. The consequences reach beyond the feedlot, as lower returns on finished cattle can reduce what feeders pay for feeder cattle, transmitting harm to stocker operators and cow-calf producers.

R-CALF USA’s position is clear: Contracts that bind producers before establishing a base price, then tie that price to future negotiated cash transactions, should be prohibited.

Packers and feeders can retain the benefits of a contractual relationship with a known base price. Requiring a firm base price preserves those benefits while protecting the producer’s opportunity to compare competing offers before committing cattle.

Congress should put these protections into law, while USDA and the Justice Department pursue the actions available under existing law.

Establish the base price while producers can still seek another buyer. Preserve contractual benefits and restore bargaining power throughout America’s cattle industry.

Do you think cattle should have a firm base price before a producer commits them to a packer?

Watch 📺: Unpriced Contracts: How Packers Weaken the Cash Cattle Market

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09/25/2026

America’s entire cattle industry depends on a market that is disappearing before our eyes: the negotiated cash cattle market. Restoring that market must be a priority as USDA and the Justice Department carry out the President’s executive order calling for stronger enforcement of the Packers and Stockyards Act.

The negotiated cash market is where cattle producers and packers bargain directly over price. Those transactions establish benchmarks used to price cattle sold through other arrangements. They also influence what feedlots can pay for feeder cattle, what stocker operators can pay for calves and, ultimately, what cow-calf producers receive.

Whether you sell finished cattle, yearlings or calves, this market affects your livelihood.

Yet the national negotiated cash share of cattle purchases fell from 52.1% in 2005 to just 17.8% in 2025.

Click below to read the full commentary.

For Immediate Release: September 25, 2026 Contact: R-CALF USA CEO Bill Bullard Phone: 406-252-2516; [email protected]   Please find below R-CALF USA’s weekly opinion/commentary that discusses the steps the USDA and […]