The Livestock and Meat Domestic Data webpage offers comprehensive U.S. statistics for red meat, poultry, and egg production. It also provides price data for cattle, hogs, and sheep, along with wholesale meat prices for beef, pork, broilers, turkeys, and eggs. In addition, these data tables also include model-derived estimates and summary statistics in the following inter-related data sets:
- All Meat Statistics
- All Supply and Disappearance
- Livestock Prices
- Wholesale Prices
- High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator
- Heifers Entering the Herd
- Feeder Cattle Supplies Outside Feedlots
- Archived data
All Meat Statistics
These summary statistics compile slaughter, production, and cold storage data for red meat, poultry, and frozen eggs from the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The purpose of this data set is to make it easy for users to search and analyze U.S. meat production and slaughter data. This file is updated monthly, allowing users to examine the data used in livestock and poultry forecasts for the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report.
Scope
This file contains monthly data starting in 1907 for slaughter counts, 1921 for production and slaughter weights, and 1917 for cold storage data. The file also includes year-to-date comparisons for the current and previous years for production, slaughter counts, and slaughter weights.
Methods
Select data are compiled from NASS’s Livestock Slaughter, Poultry Slaughter, and Cold Storage reports. These sources provide statistics for cattle, veal calves, hogs, sheep, broilers, other chickens, turkeys, and frozen eggs.
The “RedMeatPoultry_Prod” tab contains data on federally inspected production of beef, veal, pork, lamb and mutton, broilers, other chicken, and turkey. Commercial meat production data is available for beef, veal, pork, lamb and mutton. Commercial production is the sum of production from federally inspected facilities and non-federally inspected facilities, and it excludes production from slaughter on farms. Note that poultry production only includes facilities that are federally inspected, and the weight is available on a ready-to-cook basis.
The “SlaughterCounts” tab reports the number of cattle, calves (veal), hogs, sheep and lambs slaughtered on a federally inspected and commercial basis. Broilers, other chickens, and turkeys slaughtered are reported from federally inspected facilities.
The “SlaughterWeights” tab contains average live weights and dressed weights for cattle, calves (veal), hogs, sheep and lambs, broilers, other chickens, and turkeys slaughtered from federally inspected facilities.
The “ColdStorage” tab reports total pounds of product in cold storage, as published in the NASS Cold Storage report. Total beef and pork cold storage stocks are not calculated on a carcass-weight-equivalent basis as in the meat supply and disappearance tables. Also, monthly data for ending stocks in the Cold Storage report are reported here as beginning stocks for the following month. Lastly, frozen eggs are in pounds and not in dozen eggs as calculated for the meat supply and disappearance tables. Below is a table explaining those calculations. In the column on the right, calculations are expressed using the terms in “quotes” as depicted in the NASS Cold Storage report. To understand these terms, see the Cold Storage report for explanation.
| USDA ERS Terms | Calculations based on terms used in NASS Cold Storage report |
|---|---|
| Beef | = "Total beef" |
| Veal | = "Veal" |
| Pork | = "Total pork" |
| Lamb and mutton | = "Lamb and mutton" |
| Broiler | = "Total chicken" minus "Hens, mature chickens" minus "Paws and feet" |
| Other Chicken | = "Hens, mature chickens" |
| Turkey | = "Total turkey" |
| Frozen eggs | = "Total frozen eggs" |
Strengths and Limitations
This compilation brings together data from several NASS sources into one convenient file. A limitation to the cold storage data is that an expansion factor is not applied to the beef, unlike in supply and disappearance calculations.
All Supply and Disappearance
This file is updated monthly and contains compilation statistics that provide historical quarterly and annual data to reproduce the tables “U.S. Meats Supply and Use” and “U.S. Egg Supply and Use” from the WASDE report. This is the only place to find historical data from these WASDE tables. This file differ slightly from the WASDE tables by offering quarterly and annual breakouts of the published data. It also separates total production into commercial and farm production, includes population data, and provides per capita disappearance on both a carcass weight and boneless retail weight basis. Including additional variables beyond those published in the WASDE report helps users better understand how per capita disappearance is calculated.
Scope
Data originate from USDA, NASS and the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. The three USDA, NASS reports used are Livestock Slaughter Annual Summary, Meat Animals Production, Disposition, and Income Annual Summary, and Cold Storage. Population data come from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. Trade data is aggregated from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. Documentation for USDA, ERS livestock and meat trade data can be found at USDA ERS Livestock and Meat International Trade data - Documentation. In addition to the WASDE report, USDA, ERS provides disappearance calculations on the equivalent basis of carcass weight and boneless retail weight.
This file contains annual data from 1970 to 1988 for beef, veal, pork, lamb and mutton, broilers and turkey, as well as quarterly and annual data for 1989 to current. For other chickens and eggs and egg products, annual and quarterly data are available starting in 1990.
Presenting these data allows users to examine supply and demand for the various commodities and supports economic analysis.
Methods
Supply and utilization tables reflect carcass weights for red meats and certified ready-to-cook weights for poultry. Total disappearance, also referred to as domestic use, is often used as a proxy for domestic consumption.
Calculations for the quarterly and annual tables:
Red meat and poultry (million pounds)
- total disappearance = total supply - exports - ending stocks
- total supply = total production + beginning stocks + imports
Eggs and egg products (million dozen)
- total disappearance = total supply - exports - ending stocks - hatching use
- total supply = total production + beginning stocks + imports
Below are the components used to calculate domestic disappearance for beef, veal, pork and lamb, poultry, and egg and egg products:
Total Production
- Total red meat production is the sum of commercial and on farm meat production.
- Total poultry production, also referred to as net ready-to-cook, is the sum of federally inspected production minus condemnations.
- Total production of eggs and egg products are the sum of table eggs and hatching eggs.
Please refer to source publications for information on data reliability.
Beginning stocks for each quarter in January, April, July, and October, are the same as the end-of-the-month cold storage stocks reported in the NASS Cold Storage report for the months of December, March, June, and September, respectively. Note that some animal products require an expansion factor to be put on an equivalent basis with production to more accurately estimate supply and disappearance. Below is a table explaining these calculations based on the terms used in the NASS Cold Storage data in Quick Stats.
| ERS Terms | Calculations based on terms used in NASS Cold Storage reporting |
|---|---|
| Beef | = (“Boneless beef” * 1.36) + “Beef cuts” |
| Veal | = "Veal" |
| Pork | = “Total pork” - "variety meats” + (“Trimmings” × 0.5) + (“Other” × 0.5) + (“Boneless hams” × 0.3) + (“Boneless loins” × 0.3) |
| Lamb and mutton | = "Lamb and mutton" |
| Broiler | = "Total chicken" - "Hens, mature chickens" - "Paws and feet" |
| Other Chicken | = "Hens, mature chickens" |
| Turkey | = "Total turkey" |
| Frozen eggs | = "Total frozen eggs” ÷ 0.7743 |
Imports and Exports come from the Livestock and Meat International Trade Data product.
Ending stocks reflect the cold storage stock volumes reported for the end of December, March, June, and September calculated using the same formulas used for beginning stocks.
Per capita domestic disappearance is calculated on three weight bases for meat products: carcass, retail, and boneless retail. Per capita disappearance on a carcass-weight basis is calculated by dividing disappearance by the U.S. population. The U.S. population data is derived from the U.S. Census Bureau. Quarterly estimates are an average of monthly estimates of “Resident Population Plus Armed Forces Overseas.”
To derive estimates for retail and boneless retail bases, per capita disappearance on a carcass-weight basis is multiplied by the percentages in the table below:
| Commodity | Percent retail weight | Percent boneless retail weight |
|---|---|---|
| Beef | 70.0 | 67.0 |
| Veal | 83.0 | 68.5 |
| Pork | 77.6 | 72.9 |
| Lamb | 89.0 | 65.8 |
| Broiler | 85.9 | 60.2 |
| Other Chicken | 100.0 | 60.2 |
| Turkey | 100.0 | 79.0 |
For egg and egg products, disappearance is simply divided by the U.S. population to compute per capita disappearance.
Strengths and Limitations
Data from USDA, NASS are aggregated on a carcass weight equivalent basis, allowing users to analyze supply and use with consistent units. Quarterly breakouts of supply and disappearance—unique to these tables—provide additional insight not available elsewhere. While primary data are published monthly, NASS provides annual on-farm production estimates only; ERS distributes the annual estimate quarterly using methods that account for seasonal variation in on-farm slaughter.
Tables are updated as necessary throughout the year as underlying data are revised. Each March, the previous year’s supply and disappearance data are added.
Although disappearance data are used as a proxy for consumption, they differ from actual consumption because they do not account for losses such as food discarded by households, retailers, food service firms, wholesalers, or other entities in the supply chain. Since stocks are part of the calculation for domestic disappearance, timing may differ from consumption because available data do not account for stocks in transit or held by retailers and food service firms.
A limitation specific to eggs and egg products is that total disappearance leaves in losses occurred in hatching eggs. Based on the last 5 years, this represents about 12 percent of eggs produced for hatching, but only 2 percent of total disappearance. Further, the cold storage expansion factors are only estimates that convert the reported value into a carcass weight equivalent basis.
Livestock Prices
The Livestock Prices file is updated monthly and provides a compilation of monthly price data for U.S. cattle, hogs, and sheep from USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). It also includes monthly alfalfa and grass hay prices from USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). The file presents prices for the most recent 4 months available and data from the same month last year as the current month in which it is published. For the most recent month, monthly estimates are made based upon the most recent weekly and daily data available from USDA, AMS at the time of publication. Accurate, accessible price data helps stakeholders monitor market conditions for cattle and hog producers and for feedlots.
Scope
This file includes select price series for U.S. cattle, hogs, and sheep based on data from the USDA, AMS and hay prices from USDA, NASS. The file has two tabs:
- The Current tab contains an ERS-estimated price for the month of publication and official prices for the 4 previous months and 12th month prior to the publication month. The hay prices include the 5 previous months and the 12th month prior to the latest month available.
- The Historical tab contains livestock prices back to January 2000.
Methods
Livestock price data are published by the USDA, AMS and were obtained from My Market News. Live animal prices are reported in dollars per hundredweight. Alfalfa and grass hay prices are reported in dollars per ton as published in the USDA, NASS Agricultural Prices report.
Detailed methodology for each price series: Download (.xlsx) | Download (.csv)
Strengths and limitations
The prices for cattle, hogs, and sheep are reported under the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting Act of 1999, as amended. According to USDA, AMS, “Livestock Mandatory Reporting was developed to facilitate open, transparent price discovery and provide all market participants, both large and small, with comparable levels of market information for slaughter cattle, swine, sheep, boxed beef, lamb meat, and wholesale pork.” Prices reported are generally trusted benchmarks within the industry. Over time, changes have been made to enhance the program’s effectiveness and efficiency.
These price series are aggregated across six USDA, AMS Market News reports, which simplifies market analysis for cattle, hog, and sheep sectors.
USDA, ERS produces an estimated price for the current month based on available daily or weekly data. While helpful for timely analysis, these estimates may differ from final monthly averages if markets experience volatility after publication. A key limitation of using regional price series for slaughter cattle price is that USDA, AMS occasionally withholds publication to avoid improper disclosure if trade volumes are too low or there are too few traders. Further, monthly prices are sometimes not estimated if weekly volumes are not sufficient to estimate the monthly price.
Wholesale Prices
The Wholesale Prices file is updated monthly and provides compiled monthly price data for beef, pork, lamb, turkey, poultry, and eggs from the USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS). It includes prices for the current month and the 4 months prior as well as the same month last year. For the most recent month, monthly estimates are made based upon the most recent weekly and daily data available from AMS at the time of publication. These accurate and accessible data help stakeholders monitor market conditions.
Scope
This file contains official monthly prices and estimated prices for the month of publication, compiled for select price series of U.S. beef, pork, lamb, turkey, poultry, and eggs based on data from the USDA, AMS. The file has two tabs:
- The Current tab provides an ERS-estimated price for the month of publication and official prices for the 4 previous months and 12th month prior to the publication month.
- The Historical tab contains wholesale prices back to January 2000.
Methods
Wholesale meat price data are collected and published by the USDA, AMS, and reported in My Market News. Users should refer to the appropriate USDA, AMS, My Market News report for any discussion on data accuracy.
Price units vary across commodities:
- Beef, pork, and lamb: dollars per hundredweight
- Broilers and turkeys: cents per pound
- Eggs: cents per dozen
Detailed methodology for each price series: Download (.xlsx) | Download (.csv)
Strengths and limitations
Consolidating these wholesale prices series into a single file simplifies analysis of animal protein markets. The ERS-estimated price for the current month is based on data available at the time of release. This file is a complimentary data series to the Livestock Prices file. This product is limited by the availability of price series. USDA, AMS no longer publishes a price series for lamb.
Wholesale beef and pork prices are reported under the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting Act of 1999, as amended. According to USDA, AMS, “Livestock Mandatory Reporting was developed to facilitate open, transparent price discovery, and provide all market participants, both large and small, with comparable levels of market information for slaughter cattle, swine, sheep, boxed beef, lamb meat, and wholesale pork.” The prices reported are generally trusted benchmarks used by industry and the public to monitor industry market trends. These data improve the transparency of price discovery for market participants and can be used as a reference to price outputs based on comparable levels of market information.
High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator
The High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator is a spreadsheet‑based model that incorporates least-cost ration formulation, cattle performance metrics, and market dynamics in the Texas Panhandle, primarily north of the Canadian River. Although it closely approximates feeding costs and returns for the Texas High Plains area, the model’s value lies in showing directional changes over time. ERS updates the simulator monthly. This Simulator can be used to assess the likelihood of feedlots purchasing calves at particular price levels given the estimated profitability in a particular time period. Also, users can analyze feedlot returns over time.
Scope
The simulator is programmed using General Algebraic Modeling Language from GAMS Development Corporation and Microsoft Excel. This file uses primary data from USDA NASS, AMS, and the Federal Reserve. The file provides monthly estimates for the current month of release and for the prior 12 months. Historical data back to May 1990 is available upon request.
Methods
The GAMS model is a least-cost ration model with protein and energy levels dependent on average steer weight during the feeding period (out-weight minus in-weight). The objective is to minimize costs of feeding a 750-pound steer for as many days as it takes to reach the estimated final weight while gaining the average daily gain for the month the steer is placed on feed. To run the model, values for a selected set of scalars are entered, including placement month, feed prices, lagged cost of gain, average daily gain, and minimum net energy for maintenance and growth.
See resources for links to data sources.
Strengths and Limitations
A strength of this tool is its ability to mirror dynamic interactions among feed costs, animal performance, and market conditions, while other public tools for feedlot evaluation are limited in this ability. While the simulator approximates cattle feeding costs and returns in the Texas High Plains area, its primary use is as an index. Absolute numbers are less reliable. For example, it likely underestimates actual feed ration costs, in part because prices and quantities for micronutrient additives and other feed supplements are not available and are not included.
One limitation of this data product is that it approximates cattle feeding returns in the Southern Plains, particularly in Texas, and not for cattle feeding across the United States. However, Texas represents the most cattle feeding operations with 1,000 head or greater on feed. Further, the Simulator is somewhat outdated, relying on 1980s nutrient requirements that no longer reflect current feeding practices.
Heifers Entering the Herd
A replacement heifer is a young female that has not had a calf and has been selected to be bred and kept in the beef or milk herd to replace older cows or added to expand a producer’s herd. The Heifers Entering The Herd file contains three tables. The first 2 tables provide summary estimates for the number of total heifers entering the cow herd as a replacement and total beef heifers entering the beef cow herd as a replacement in the first and second halves of the year. These tables provide insight as to whether producers are choosing to increase the size of their herds or replace older cows.
The third table in the file contains data compiled from the USDA, NASS January Cattle report offering a snapshot of cattle inventory by class for the latest January report and the prior 9 years. Sometimes users are not sure where to find this data, and this table provides a quick snapshot.
Scope
This file is updated twice a year—February and August—and reflects U.S. herd data.
Methods
Tables 1 and 2 are produced from calculations using ERS estimates for death loss data derived from USDA, NASS Cattle and Livestock Slaughter reports.
Total disappearance Jan-Jun
= (Commercial cow slaughter Jan-Jun) + (0.01 * Cow inventory on January 1)
Heifers entering the herd first half of year
= (Cow inventory, July 1) + (Total disappearance Jan-June) – (Cow inventory, January 1)
Percent of heifers entering per total number of intended cow replacements on January 1
= 100 × (Heifers entering the herd in first half of year) / (Heifers for cow replacement, January 1)
Total disappearance Jul-Dec
= (Commercial cow slaughter Jul-Dec) + (0.005 * Cow inventory, January 1)
Heifers entering the herd second half of year
= (Cow inventory, January 1 of following year) + (Total disappearance Jul-Dec) – (Cow inventory, July 1)
Percent of heifers entering per total number of intended cow replacements on January 1
= (Heifers entering the herd in second half of year) / (Heifers for cow replacement, July 1)
Table 3 summarizes data from the USDA, NASS January Cattle report, and users should consult NASS reports for discussion on data reliability.
Strengths and limitations
USDA, ERS assumes death loss in the first half of the year is calculated as 1.0 percent of cow inventory on January 1st and in the second half of the year as 0.5 percent of the January 1st inventory. Actual death losses may vary from these estimates. While the first two tables provide estimates for total cows and beef cows, respectively, a separate table for estimating dairy cows entering the herd is not provided. However, users can apply the same formulas to estimate dairy heifers entering the herd.
Feeder Cattle Supplies Outside Feedlots
The Feeder Cattle Supplies Outside Feedlots file provides estimates of the number of cattle available outside U.S. feedlots at the beginning of each quarter. Knowing the available supply of cattle outside feedlots, stakeholders can receive insight into the number of placements in the following quarter. The historical and seasonal relationship of the number of placements to the number of calves outside feedlots can shape the outlook for placements in a quarter. The number of feeder cattle supplies can also give context to the number of head that might be available for placement giving the beef industry insight into short-term beef supply. The number of feeder cattle available also reflects broader herd dynamics, including beef cow herd size, calf crop, and the number of beef heifers retained for breeding.
Scope
USDA, ERS produces quarterly estimates using biannual data reported in the USDA, NASS Cattle report and aggregated slaughter data based on USDA, NASS Livestock Slaughter reports. These estimates reflect U.S. cattle supplies available for placement in feedlots.
Methods
Calculations are based on data from the USDA, NASS Cattle report and Livestock Slaughter report. Below are the formulas used to estimate the number of feeder cattle outside feedlots:
Calculation for January 1 =
[Inventory of calves under 500 pounds (lbs.)] + [Inventory of steers over 500 lbs.] + [Inventory of other heifers over 500 lbs.] – [Total cattle and calves on feed inventory in all feedlots on January 1]
Calculation for April 1 =
[Feeder cattle outside feedlots on January 1] – [Commercial calf slaughter from January through March] – [Commercial steer slaughter from January through March] – [Commercial heifer slaughter from January through March] – [Total cattle and calves on feed inventory in all feedlots on April 1]
- [Total cattle and calves on feed inventory in all feedlots on April 1] = ([Total number of cattle and calves on feed inventory on January 1] / [Cattle and calves on feed inventory in feedlots with 1,000 head or greater capacity on January 1]) x [Cattle and calves on feed inventory in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 head or more on April 1]
Calculation for July 1 =
[Inventory of calves under 500 lbs.] + [Inventory of steers over 500 lbs.] + [Inventory of other heifers over 500 lbs.] – [Total cattle and calves on feed inventory in all feedlots on July 1]
Calculation for October 1 =
[Feeder cattle outside feedlots on July 1] – [Commercial calf slaughter for July through September] – [Commercial steer slaughter for July through September] – [Commercial heifer slaughter for July through September] – [Total cattle on feed from all feedlots on October 1]
- [Total cattle on feed from all feedlots on October 1] = ([Total number of cattle on feed on July 1] / [Number of cattle and calves on feed inventory in feedlots with 1,000 head or greater capacity on July 1]) x [Number of cattle and calves on feed inventory in feedlots with capacity of 1,000 head or more on October 1]
The ERS Livestock and Meat Domestic Data team relies on reliability measures from trusted sources. This documentation is designed to simplify the process for stakeholders to trace the origins of the information presented, promoting a deeper understanding of the source data. For detailed exploration of statistical methodologies and insights into accuracy measures like statistical reliability, consult USDA, NASS reports which contain a "Statistical Methodology" section detailing standard errors..
Strengths and limitations
NASS provides reliability statistics for its estimates near the end of the Livestock Slaughter, Cattle on Feed, and Cattle reports—the three NASS sources for this data file. These statistics provide an insight into the cattle supply available for placement in feedlots. Most of the remaining cattle outside of feedlots are likely calves under 500 pounds, and producers may not have yet determined if the calves are being retained in the herd. As a result, only a portion of the cattle outside feedlots will be placed in the quarter.
A limitation of these calculations is that estimations for the third and fourth quarters require a mid-year Cattle report. In recent history, the mid-year Cattle report was cancelled in 2013, 2016, and 2024.
Archived Data
Broiler, Turkey, and Egg costs
This file is no longer updated and will remain archived on the ERS webpage until 2031.
The Broiler, Turkey, and Egg Costs file is a compilation of data that shows changes in U.S. feed costs and U.S. market prices for broilers, turkeys, and eggs. Feed costs and market prices for the poultry products are indexed to the average of the prices in 1998-2000. The difference between costs and market prices is then separately indexed to an average of the difference in 1998-2000. This is not a difference of the indexes, but rather an index of the difference. Calculations are based on price data from the USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service.
Scope
This index uses U.S. prices of corn and soybean meal and U.S. poultry prices for the calculations. The file provides monthly estimates from January 2000 through February 2026, with a gap in estimates from August 2022 through January 2025.
Methods
In calculating the input costs, a lag between the purchase of feed and production of a marketable product is assumed; this is 2 months for broilers, 1 month for eggs, and 3 months for turkeys. Other assumptions are detailed in the table below.
| Assumption | Units | Broilers | Turkeys | Eggs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corn delivery charge | Cents per bushel | 45.0 | 25.0 | 32.0 |
| Soybean meal delivery charge | Dollars per ton | 19.30 | 17.00 | 20.00 |
| Percent of corn in ration | Percent | 68.0 | 70.0 | 81.0 |
| Percent of soybean meal in ration | Percent | 26.0 | 30.0 | 19.0 |
| Factor for other ingredients* | 30 | 1.08 | 1.05 | |
| Feed conversion | Pounds of feed per live pounds (or doz.) | 2.00 | 2.95 | 4.05 |
| Milling charge | U.S. dollars per ton | 8.70 | 16.00 | 13.50 |
*For broilers, the factor for other ingredients is added within the brackets as dollars per ton. For turkeys and eggs, the factor for other ingredients is multiplied.
These tables include soybean meal prices in dollars per ton and corn prices in dollars per bushel published by USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. Soybean meal prices are sourced from the National Grain and Oilseed Processor Feedstuff Report. The corn price used is the Chicago price for yellow #2 corn. It is published in the Illinois Grain Bids report.
Given the monthly feed ingredient prices and the assumptions in the table above, the equation below is used to calculate the cost of production (U. S. dollars per pound of live weight). This cost is then indexed to the average of the costs in 1998-2000.
For Broilers:
((((((((2-month lagged corn price + delivery charge ÷ 100) ÷ 56) × 2000) × percent of corn in ration ÷ 100)
+ ((2-month lagged soybean meal price + delivery charge) × percent of soybean meal in ration ÷ 100))
+ Factor for other ingredients + Milling charge) ÷ 2000) × 100) × Feed conversion
For Turkeys and Eggs:
(((((((((2-month lagged corn price + delivery charge ÷ 100) ÷ 56) × 2000) × percent of corn in ration ÷ 100)
+ ((2-month lagged soybean meal price + delivery charge) × percent of soybean meal in ration ÷ 100))
× Factor for other ingredients) + Milling charge) ÷ 2000) × 100) × Feed conversion
Similarly, the market prices for the poultry products are indexed to the average of the prices in 1998-2000. The difference between costs and market prices is then separately indexed to an average of the difference in 1998-2000. This is not a difference of the indexes, but rather an index of the difference.
Market prices for poultry and egg products are taken from publications by USDA, Agricultural Marketing Service:
- Broilers: National Composite Whole Bird price, published in the Monthly National Chicken Report.
- Eggs: Monthly average of the Combined Regional price for large eggs, published in the Weekly Combined Regional Shell Egg Report.
- Turkey: Free-on-board (FOB) price for frozen whole Grade A hens, published in the Monthly National Turkey Report.
Strengths and Limitations
This dataset provides a measure of the costs to produce poultry products, reflecting changing prices for inputs. It also provides a measure of the margins between costs and wholesale prices. However, the costs are calculated using an unchanging set of assumptions on the shares of inputs in poultry rations, as well as other factors that are variable in actual poultry operations. These shares and other factors change with market conditions. Feed is one of the most expensive inputs to poultry production, but not the sole expense.
Resources
The USDA, Agricultural Marketings Service (AMS) data referenced above can be accessed through My Market News.
Production Indicators and Estimated Returns
This file is no longer updated and will remain archived here until 2031.
The Production Indicators and Estimated Returns file contains two sections and provides a singular location to assess trends of estimated returns for feeding feeder cattle, poultry, and egg layers:
- Production Indicators section summarizes data on the number of cattle on feed and hatchery data for poultry and eggs from USDA, NASS sources.
- Estimated Returns summarizes data from the High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator file and the Broiler, Turkey, and Egg Costs (BTE) file.
Scope
This file contains a collection of data on cattle on feed and hatchery data for poultry and eggs, as well as estimated returns for the associated month’s release from the High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator (see documentation above) and the associated data from the BTE Costs file (see documentation above). Archived data covers December 2000 to February 2026, but not all of the data series have historical data going back to December 2000.
Methods
These data make use of production indicators that are taken directly from USDA, NASS and estimated returns that are based on ERS calculations. Please see the primary source listed for any discussion on data reliability.
Strengths and limitations
This data product has two sections. The production indicators data are aggregated from three USDA, NASS reports, providing cattle on feed, broilers and turkeys incubated and placed, as well as eggs produced and hatched.
Production indicators:
- Cattle on feed data are official estimates from the USDA, NASS Cattle on Feed report.
- Boiler data are official estimates from the USDA, NASS Chicken and Eggs report.
- Turkey data are official estimates from the USDA, NASS Turkey Hatchery report.
- Eggs data are official estimates from the USDA, NASS Chicken and Eggs report.
Estimated returns:
- High Plains cattle feedlot summarizes estimates from the High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator, and methodology can be found in that section above.
- BTE cost indexes are based on the BTE Costs file and methodology can be found in that section above.
There is no forecast or estimate for the month that the data are published, which is different from the other files on this webpage. The section for estimated returns provides snapshots of the data published in the High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator and the BTE Cost file. For additional information on the BTE cost indexes, see the documentation on the BTE Cost file. The consolidated information provides for limited short-term analysis of cattle and poultry feeding operations and the number of animals to be slaughtered in the future. An additional limitation is that this type of data is not available for hogs, veal, or sheep.
Resources
Below are links to other related sources of data, as well as resources that provide additional information or context for the products listed on this page.
- Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlook: A USDA, ERS monthly report explaining the forecast changes in USDA's World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE), as well as covering market developments affecting livestock, dairy, and poultry industries.
- Cattle & Beef topics page: A USDA, ERS webpage that explores historical trends and emerging issues in agriculture, food, the environment, and rural America.
- WASDE at a Glance: A USDA, ERS monthly interactive visualization that provides key data and highlights from USDA's WASDE on livestock and dairy as well as field crops.
- Livestock and Meat International Trade Data: A USDA, ERS webpage that contains monthly and annual data for imports and exports of live cattle, hogs, sheep, and goats, as well as for beef and veal, pork, lamb and mutton, chicken meat, turkey meat, and eggs.
- Meat Price Spreads: A USDA, ERS monthly updated dataset that provides average price values, and the differences among those values, at the farm, wholesale, and retail stages of the production and marketing chain for selected cuts of beef, pork, and broilers. In addition, retail prices are provided for beef and pork cuts, turkey, whole chickens, eggs, and dairy products.
- Commodity Costs and Returns: A USDA, ERS data product that provides annual estimates of production costs and returns for major field crops, milk, hogs, and cow-calf.
- USDA's Agricultural Baseline Projections, an annual report published in February that offers 10-year projections from USDA's annual long-term projections analysis.
- Data resources for the High Plains Cattle Feeding Simulator:
- Oklahoma City National Stockyards Feeder Cattle, feeder steers 750–800 pounds, medium and large 1, dollars per hundredweight.
- Texas/Oklahoma/New Mexico Daily Direct Slaughter Cattle – Negotiated Purchases, Steers: Live FOB, Choice 35-65 percent, dollars per hundredweight.
- Texas Daily Grain Bids, average prices (dollars per bushel) for Corn, Sorghum, Wheat, in the North, Central, South Panhandles.
- Monthly National Grain and Oilseed Processor Feedstuff Report, cottonseed meal 41 percent asking price (dollars per ton) reported in St. Louis, Missouri.
- USDA NASS, Agricultural Prices, monthly prices received (dollars per ton) for Alfalfa in Texas.
- Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Agricultural Survey, quarterly fixed interest rates for feeder cattle.
- For information on the methodology and quality measures for hay prices, see USDA, NASS’ Agriculture Prices Program
Recommended citation
U. S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. (n.d.). Livestock and Meat Domestic Data. [Data set].