USDA on Friday said the number of cattle on feed as of Feb. 1 fell 3.2% from a year earlier, while placements and marketings last month declined from the same period in 2025, underscoring tight supplies.
| Cattle on Feed Report | USDA (% of year ago) | Estimate (% of year ago) |
| Cattle on Feed (Feb. 1) | 98% | 98.4% |
| Placements (Jan.) | 95% | 96.0% |
| Marketings (Jan.) | 87% | 87.0% |
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 11.5 million head on Feb. 1, down 2 percent from the same date a year ago.
Placements in feedlots during January totaled 1.74 million head, 5 percent below 2025, USDA said. Net placements were 1.68 million head.
Breaking down by weight, USDA said:
- Placements of cattle and calves weighing less than 600 pounds were 360,000 head,
- 600-699 pounds were 365,000 head,
- 700-799 pounds were 455,000 head,
- 800-899 pounds were 381,000 head,
- 900-999 pounds were 105,000 head, and
- 1,000 pounds and greater were 70,000 head.
Marketings of fed cattle during January totaled 1.63 million head, 13 percent below 2025.
The figures weren’t far out of line with pre-report estimates (see table above). A Bloomberg survey found an average estimate for cattle on feed at 98.4% of a year ago, while placements were seen at 96% and marketings at 87%.
Other disappearance totaled 55,000 head during January, 8 percent below 2025, USDA said.