Early indications suggest steady to lower cash fed cattle prices this week.
In the weekly Fed Cattle Exchange Auction, 75 head sold out of 704 offered, at $116/cwt. for delivery at 1-9 days. That was about $1.50 lower than last week’s 5-area weekly weighted average.
Likewise, slaughter steers and heifers traded steady to $1 lower at Sioux Falls Livestock in South Dakota.
Cattle futures gave back most of the previous session’s gains on Wednesday. Following tentative early follow-through support.
Live Cattle futures closed an average of 57¢ lower (20¢ to 77¢ lower).
Feeder Cattle futures closed an average of $1.36 lower (75¢ to $1.85 lower).
Choice boxed beef cutout value was $1.58 lower on Wednesday afternoon at $202.48/cwt. Select was 90¢ lower at $185.02.
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Major U.S. financial indices closed mixed on Wednesday with mostly positive macro news that included the Fed’s long-expected and nominal raise in interest rates.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 80 points higher. The S&P 500 closed 1 point lower. The NASDAQ closed 13 points higher.
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Although alternative protein markets are growing, don’t expect to see lab-grown meats hitting the market any time soon, according to a recent report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange Division.
Alternative proteins include products derived from plant sources, insects and what are known as cultured or alternative meats, those grown in a lab.
“The future success of alternative meat lies squarely with rising global demand for protein rather than a battle for the existing market share of animal protein food products,” says Trevor Amen, an economist with CoBank. “The road to commercial viability and consumer acceptance of cultured meat is long and this type of product is unlikely to have a marked effect on traditional animal protein demand through at least the next decade.”
Challenges for the cultured meat folks include prohibitive production costs currently, consumer perception and the lack of any sort of regulatory framework.