With all the moisture though, the calf market doesn’t seem to be jumping any. Calves in the southeast apparently are bringing $10.00 to $20.00 /cwt less than they were. There does not seem to be a big demand for calves around here, although there is sure plenty of forage for them. Pairs and bred cows seem to be in the same boat, with most of the 1st and 2nd trimester cows ending up at the packing plants. That is probably good for the industry in the long run, because generally a lower supply and good demand means better prices!

Fat cattle continue to fall, with only the whims of the packers determining what the price is. Hamburgers and steaks in all these restaurants that you have to stand in line for are still the same price as they were when fats were bringing $100.00 and now they’re only bringing $83.00! That’s over $200.00 a head less for fat cattle! Why isn’t there a 20% decrease in the price of beef in the supermarkets or restaurants?

Opportunity comes in all shapes and sizes. Last year, without any moisture, no wheat pasture, no grass, and all the hay piles gone, pairs brought $100.00 or more a head than they are today and calves were $10.00/cwt more. It seems like most of the time, the opportunity in cattle is just having a home for them at the right time. Right now, there is plenty of “home” for cattle, they just need someone to put them there! How much grass and moisture does it take for a cow and calf to survive?

We still have a great cattle market! Calves are bringing up to $140.00, with yearlings still bringing over $100.00, even with fats in the eighties. Butcher cows are bringing up to and sometimes over $60.00 and good butcher bulls up in the seventies! Possession is the key; you can’t sell a $600.00 calf if you don’t have one! Take advantage of all the wonderful moisture and the opportunities it’s giving us!

In celebration of our independence and the Fourth of July holiday, we will not be having a sale next Tuesday, July 3. We will resume our regular weekly schedule on Tuesday, July 10, 2007! The next video sale will be on July 17th, with our monthly cow sale on July 31! Please call if you have any questions or consignments! Have a safe and happy holiday!

Thank You for all your business,

Weston Winter

www.winterlivestock.com

What would folks do if they didn’t have insurance or an oil well? A big percentage of folks missed out on cattle income this year because of no wheat pasture; folks also had to sell cattle early, missing out on thousands of pounds of gain, not to mention that many people had to sell cows and calves this fall. The market break last fall sure didn’t help matters either!

One thing about this market though, is it’s very strong! Even though prices are less than last year, we’re still seeing nine weight steers bring over $100.00. Some of these big cattle are bringing over $1000.00 a head, and that’s with grain prices going higher! The futures board has come down some ten dollars a hundred off it’s highs, and it’s still probably $20.00/cwt higher than what it’s averaged over the last twenty years! We have a great market, if we could just figure out how to reduce the input costs!

American agriculture has come a long way in the last generation. The United States is still the largest producer of many agriculture products, but sheer numbers around the world might change that. We are the largest beef producer in the world, but have the third largest beef cow herd! What will happen when the largest beef processor in the world is no longer in the United States, but in the country with the largest cow herd? It sure seems like our retailers and packers need to figure out if the bottom line is going to be greed or making sure that American beef stays number 1.

Winter Livestock in Enid will be having a sale on Tuesday, June 26! We shut down on extra week in hopes of harvest, but Mother Nature blessed everyone with a lot of rain! We’re looking forward to a great sale next week! We really appreciate everyone’s patience and cooperation!

CONSIGNED FOR TUESDAY, JUNE 26, 2007:

Edwards Ranch 400 blk/bwf heifers, gtd open, off grass, 650-800 lbs
100 blk/char/red steers, off grass, 750-850 lbs
50 Blk/Red/Char pairs, 4-10 yrs old, angus sired calves
15 Blk/Bwf 1st calf pairs, with angus sired calves
Crown H Ranch 50 Blk/Bwf 1st calf pairs, Express Ranch sired calves
Woods Ranch 3 Reg. Blk Limousin Bulls, coming 3 yr olds, gtd
S & B Farms 125 Eng/Exotx steers, off grass, 750-900 lbs

VIDEO AUCTION AT 9:00AM, 10,000 CALVES AND YEARLINGS!

Attendance at the auctions will be pretty light for the next few weeks, with harvest and field work to be done. Buyers will definitely outnumber sellers for awhile, but that’s sure okay! The market is holding together very well, with excellent demand for big feeders. Almost all the feeder cattle bringing from $95.00 to $110.00, with some cattle bringing even more! Stocker cattle seeing less demand, but they are still selling at good prices.

Fat cattle continue to sell in a see-saw manner. Bids for fats were at $90.00 compared to $98.00 just 10 days ago. The cutout values have come down about $10.00 in that same time period also. However, demand for beef continues to get bigger! The grilling and vacation seasons are upon us, and that’s usually the best time for beef!

Something very interesting has come up recently. A company in South America, where the world’s largest beef cow herd is located, has purchased a major beef packing company in the U.S., making it the world’s largest beef processor. A foreign car company is now the world’s number 1 car sales company, and getting closer to outselling the local car companies here in America. Apparently, the big corporations in the United States are just going to let all the business and work go to other countries.

We seem to have a delicate situation here. U.S. college students think they should not have to work their way up and are supposed to be paid like they did. Many people think that some of the manual labor jobs are not good enough for them and would rather receive welfare. Illegal immigrants are taking over the jobs in the United States that have not already been shipped overseas to places where they don’t have to have top dollar.

One of the biggest things affecting agriculture today is the availability of people to do the work. There are less and less farms in the United States and therefore less kids growing up on them who know how to work. The illegal aliens coming in are willing to do the work, but that’s just it, they’re illegal. It’s a sad thing when people don’t want to work to better their country and themselves.

THERE WILL BE NO SALE NEXT TUESDAY, JUNE 12, 2007

OUR NEXT SALE WILL BE JUNE 19, 2007!
THE NEXT VIDEO SALE WILL BE JUNE 26, 2007!

HOPE EVERYONE HAS A GREAT HARVEST!
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR BUSINESS