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Louisiana Cattle Market Update

Louisiana Cattle Market Update Friday, October 29th, 2010 Ross Pruitt, Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Louisiana State University AgCenter
On the heels of an unusually cold and wet winter last year, meteorologists are predicting a warmer and drier winter than usual for Louisiana. This prediction is being driven by the developing La Niña weather phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean that is expected to be moderate to strong this winter and likely exacerbate existing drought conditions in the state if the forecast is proven accurate. All but the extreme northern portions of Louisiana have at least a 33% chance of experiencing below normal precipitation until the end of January.
The lack of rain throughout the state has made ryegrass planting difficult but has not completely stopped planting. For producers able to successfully establish ryegrass, timely rainfalls may occur and aid production of this winter forage. Following last winter, non-alfalfa hay production in Louisiana is forecasted to increase to 1.3 million tons this year (1.1 million tons last year) and total U.S. non-alfalfa hay production is also forecasted higher. Prices at this time in the marketing year (May through April) for hay are below the seasonal average and normally don’t increase above the annual average price until February, but continued drought conditions in the southeastern U.S. can cause this trend not to hold. The latest price from the Alabama Southeast Hay Report for small round rolls of Bermuda hay is $65.39/ton.
Should your herd require supplementation this winter, make sure you are providing the correct feedstuffs to meet the nutrients that are limited in their diet. Prices for many of the feedstuffs below have been rising the past few weeks and certainly could continue to do so given that much of the southeastern U.S. is facing dry conditions which are expected to intensify during the winter. The nutrients included in the table below represent the cost of the feedstuff quoted at the pricing point. The pricing points are southeast Alabama (hay), Memphis (soybean hulls, whole cottonseed, and dried distillers grains), St. Louis (corn gluten), and Pine Bluff, Arkansas (corn).

Source: USDA AMS Finally, there is available from the Farm Service Agency the Livestock Forage Program (LFP) which insures producers for grazing losses should drought conditions occur. The sign-up period for the 2011 year is currently occurring until February 28, 2011. Producers interested in this program must purchase Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance (NAP) coverage to be eligible for LFP. The cost is $250 for the year and covers any drought conditions that occur between April 15th and November 15th of each year. A fact sheet on LFP is available at: http://www.fsa.usda.gov/Internet/FSA_File/lfp09.pdf.