USDA on Friday said the number of cattle on feed as of Mar. 1 fell 0.3% from a year earlier, while placements last month increased, and marketings during February declined from the same period in 2025.
| Cattle on Feed Report | USDA (% of year ago) | Estimate (% of year ago) |
| Cattle on Feed (Mar. 1) | 100% | 99.3% |
| Placements (Feb.) | 104% | 100.2% |
| Marketings (Feb.) | 93% | 92.6% |
USDA said cattle and calves on feed for the slaughter market in the United States for feedlots with capacity of 1,000 or more head totaled 11.549 million head on Mar. 1, down 0.3% from the same date a year ago. Placements in feedlots during February totaled 1.611 million head, 4 percent above 2025 according to the report. Net placements were 1.56 million head.
Breaking down by weight, USDA said:
- Placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 305,000 head,
- 600-699 pounds were 280,000 head,
- 700-799 pounds were 445,000 head,
- 800-899 pounds were 396,000 head,
- 900-999 pounds were 130,000 head, and
- 1,000 pounds and greater were 55,000 head.
Marketings of fed cattle during February totaled 1.522 million head, 7 percent below 2025.
The figures weren’t far out of line with pre-report estimates (see table above), although placements came in slightly higher than expected. A Reuters survey found an average estimate for cattle on feed at 99.3% of a year ago, while placements were seen at 100.2% and marketings at 92.6%.
Other disappearance totaled 50,000 head during January, 17 percent below 2025, USDA said.