The weather market of 2023 is under way in a dramatic manner to start the week. Reports of cattle weighing up light are common across the entire state of Nebraska, Kansas and Colorado. Cattle are weighing up 40 pounds to as much as 200 pounds light. Average daily gains have dropped as calories are used by cattle to keep warm rather than gain weight. Wind chills below zero were the norm this morning from the Texas panhandle to Canada and even out in Idaho, where there are a record number of cattle on feed.

Experienced cattle feeders know that a winter like this one has a very long tail and performance will only worsen from now until warmer temps finally return. Carcass weights will crater this year because of the brutal winter weather and will bottom in late May at levels not seen in years. This will accentuate an already bullish set of supply fundamentals as fed cattle supplies fall sharply from 2022 levels.

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'The Beef' is published by Consolidated Beef Producers