By Josh Maples
USDA released two months’ worth of cattle on feed data on Friday with the November Cattle on Feed report that backfilled missing data from the government shutdown. Cattle on feed as of November 1 was 2.2 percent (260,000 head) lower than it was a year ago. Placements of cattle into feedlots was 10 percent lower during October 2025 than it was in October 2024. Marketings were down 8 percent from a year ago. For the first 10 months of 2025, total placements were 17.6 million head. This is 6.4 percent below the same period of 2024 (18.8 million head).
There continued to be significant regional differences in cattle on feed changes. The number of cattle on feed in Texas on November 1 was 8.7 percent below a year ago and Colorado was 13.2 percent below year ago. However, the other top 5 feeding states are up from a year ago – Nebraska up 2.3 percent, Kansas up 2.1 percent, and Iowa up 4.5 percent. October 2025 placements were lower in all of these states except for Iowa.