Sterling Marketing president John Nalivka projects cash profit margins for cow-calf producers in 2021 will average $123 per cow. For feedyards, Nalivka projects an average profit of $43 per head in 2021, and packer margins are projected to average $251 per head.

Arizona’s Cattle Industry Today Today, an estimated 880,000 head of cattle and calves are present in Arizona, spread out over more than 6,000 ranches and farms in each of the state’s 15 counties.

The U.S. feedlot industry primarily utilizes Bos taurus breeds such as Angus, Simmental, Hereford, and Charolais— referred to as European breeds.

about three to four months
Cattle normally remain in a feedlot for about three to four months or until they reach a weight at or above 1,200 pounds. When they reach this weight they are then transported to the packing plant to be slaughtered and distributed.

Fed cattle can make money, even as high input costs continue to plague cattle-feeding profitability. With high feeder cattle and ration costs putting fed-cattle breakevens in the $1.25/lb.

Calf-feds may be on feed from 150 to as long as 300 days, depending on the production system. These cattle usually are placed in the feedlot directly following weaning.

Cattle & calves and dairy goods are Arizona’s most valuable farm products, with cattle & calves representing 18% of total farm receipts and dairy products 20%. There are approximately 980,000 head of cattle & calves and 192,000 milk cows in the state with a yearly milk production of 23,382 pounds per cow.

Most small land tracts in Arizona, less than 10 acres, do not have the carrying capacity to support even one horse or cow for a year. Unless the site is irrigated or subirri- gated, forage production will rarely exceed 1 acre/AUM, and most rangeland pastures will require at least 4 acres to provide an AUM of forage.

All cattle—whether they are grass-finished or finished in a feedlot—spend the majority of their lives grazing on grass pasture. Once cattle reach market weight—typically 1,200-1,400 pounds and 18-22 months of age—they are sent to a processing facility to be harvested.

Arizona’s beef industry manages more than 71 percent of the state’s cattle and calf inventory. Grazing is the dominant land use in Arizona, making up 73 percent of Arizona’s total land area and approximately 98 percent of Arizona’s total agricultural land, with cropland accounting for the remaining 2 percent of agricultural land.

Total number of cattle and calves on January 1, 2018: 1,000,000 head* (ranked 31st in the nation) A study by the University of Arizona’s Cooperative Extension Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics (read the 2014 study here)

The beef community contributed $431 million to Arizona’s GDP. Approximately 21 percent of all farms in Arizona specialize in beef production. The beef industry exports approximately $521 million (43%) of its total beef output.